


Falling For You

by DragonWriter96



Category: Doctor Who, EXO (Band), Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: Adopted Sibling Relationship, F/M, Falling In Love, Friendship, Genderfluid Character, Holidays, Multiple Fandoms, Mythology - Freeform, torn between four guys
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-25
Updated: 2018-06-02
Packaged: 2019-02-06 12:56:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 24,073
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12818010
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DragonWriter96/pseuds/DragonWriter96
Summary: Natasha Higgins is the coordinator for an inter-universal cooperation. When she gets the opportunity to introduce her favorite K-pop band to the world of magic and superpowers that she manages, she jumps at the chance. What she isn't expecting is to gain a new family. And maybe a little more...





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to chapter one! I hope you all enjoy. This story starts around Halloween, and will end either around Christmas or New Year's. I haven't decided yet. This all takes place in a universe that has many fandoms all together! Other fandoms are connected by portals. Everyone works together to share technology and knowledge.

Prologue

You never know exactly what your life will turn out to be. Three years ago, I had no idea that I would soon be thrust into a world of magic, monsters, heroes, and villains. All I was focused on was graduating High School. Then I took a trip into Charlotte for a day. That day changed my life. It was the day I met The Doctor. Yes, that Doctor. The one from the TV show. It was Ten, to be precise. He showed up just in time to save me from a Weeping Angel, and then took me on a little adventure to space.  
Turns out the world is full of things that everyone thought were just fictional. Stargate Command actually exists, and they’ve traveled to more than just the Pegasus Galaxy at this point. The Doctor told me that they were the ones to spear head human exploration and colonization of multiple galaxies in the future.  
The Marvel superheroes are extremely active in this universe, and I eventually met and hooked up with the Avengers and SHIELD. After all, there are only so many things that can be passed off as filming accidents for movies and TV shows before even the dumbest people start to notice things. After the events chronicled in Captain America the Winter Soldier, the world had to be told. That is where SHIELD and I come in.  
Yeah, I work with SHIELD now. See, being a massive geek, I’d watched a lot of the things that I was now involved in. And as a fan of crossover stories, I did my best to coordinate the various groups to work together rather than fight each other and butt heads all the time. And I was good at it. Before long, a small Cooperation had formed between SHIELD, the SGC, and UNIT. And it was expanding. By the time the disaster of Age of Ultron happened, the world was united by a Cooperation that had even grown to include other universes for ‘fandoms’ like Star Wars, Star Trek, and the DC Universe. We were an Inter-Universal Cooperation.  
So, here we are. The year is now 2017. I am 21 years old. I live in a beautiful apartment near Chinatown in New York City. I still go on occasional trips with the Doctor. In fact, thanks to him and the TARDIS, I can now speak fluent Korean and Mandarin. It’s almost Halloween, and the groups in the cooperation that deal with magic are preparing for the most active night of the year. A night where danger lurks around the corners of this big city, and you could run into anyone… Or anything.

My name is Natasha Higgins.  
This, is my story.


	2. Wolf

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chinese is in underlined italics  
> Korean is underlined only  
> Telepathy is in italics

Chapter One

Wolf

 

                Natasha Higgins loved the holidays. After years of not being allowed by her parents to do anything with Halloween, she thoroughly embraced it and made it her own. She was currently working with the demigods of Camp Half-Blood to organize a Halloween party in her apartment. Other people were invited too, of course, but it would mostly be for the younger crowd.

                “Annabeth, chill! I promise, I’ve discussed things with my contacts in the Wizarding Congress. They’ve assured me they will help to put up some extra protections for everyone on Halloween night. Everyone will be safe!” Nat had been on the phone with Annabeth Chase for the last thirty minutes, trying to get the daughter of Athena to calm down and understand that every precaution was being taken to ensure no monsters crashed their party.

                “We’ve tested the wizard magic at camp! Of course it works! I swear, if you keep bringing up the same stuff, I will hang up right now!” Nat hooked a filmy cobweb around the corner of her tv stand and draped it across the front of the piece. “Thank you. Now, why don’t you go help your boyfriend figure out what the two of you are coming as, because no one is getting into this party without a costume.”

                Nat hung up before Annabeth could retort, and the volume on the tv turned back up automatically. “Thanks, FRIDAY,” she said with a smile. Tony had linked her apartment into his new AI system after she’d had a couple guys try to break into the place.

                She continued to decorate as Law and Order: SVU played in the background. In a universe where fiction was reality, there were still a few shows that were purely fiction. At least for her. She was sure there was a universe out there somewhere that was probably full of cop shows in real life. But, until she found it, she’d enjoy one of the only fictional things left to her.

                A chime sounded, and Nat turned toward the screen set in one wall. “Hey, Phil! What’s up?”

                Phil Coulson chuckled, “You busy, Nat?”

                “Not really,” she replied, stepping up on the couch so she could tie a small skeleton to the fan. “Why?”

                “I need you to come in for an orientation.”

                Nat turned to the screen with a glare as she hopped down off the couch. “Phiiilll. You know how I feel about orientation.”

                “Yes, I do. That’s why we’ve already gone through everything with getting them registered. This is just orientation for the Cooperation. I promise.”

                Nat’s expression smoothed. “Okay, then! You said ‘they’, so is it a new group?”

                “Not in the typical sense,” he replied. “Mae suggested letting it be a surprise, but I think you’ll need some time so you can be at least a little professional around them.”

                Nat crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. “What are you talking about, Phil?”

                “It’s that K-pop group that you love so much. Exo.’

                Nat froze. He had to be joking. Was he joking? “Are you joking?” she asked, trying to keep her voice calm.

                “No, I’m not joking. The members of Exo have powers.”

                Nat almost fell over. She sat down on the couch instead, covering her mouth with her hands so she wouldn’t start screaming. “They must’ve done what everyone else did,” she said, when she was fairly certain she could speak in a normal tone of voice. “They used the MV concept as a cover for anything strange that might be seen by fans. I’m sure some people noticed, but I’ve never come across any indication, so they must’ve erased the evidence.”

                “The meeting to introduce them to the Cooperation is in half an hour,” Phil continued, undeterred by the fangirl bomb he’d just dropped. “Make sure you leave at least five minutes to get transported from the Prometheus, and we’ll meet you there. Get yourself together and presentable.” Phil ended the video call, leaving Nat alone in her living room. Alone, that is, except for the presence of her two cats, Daniel and Arwen, who came slinking around the corner almost as soon as the call ended.

                “Did you hear that?” Nat asked them, the felines coming to sit at her feet. “Exo have powers. And they’re joining the Cooperation.” Daniel blinked up at her while Arwen released a tiny huff and left to check her food bowl. The cats were from another planet the Doctor had taken her to once. They had near-human intelligence, and were very strong, which made them even better than guard dogs.

                Nat couldn’t hold it anymore. She let out a shriek of excitement which sent Daniel skittering away to the cat cove near the ceiling. Nat leapt up and began dancing around, incoherently screaming and shouting that she was going to get to meet Exo.

                Exo was a Korean pop music group under SM Entertainment. The twelve members had just released their fourth main album. The most recent music video had greatly focused on one of their earliest concepts where all the members had powers. Whether this was to draw attention away from their new status as registered members of the Cooperation, or it was simply a way to maintain their concept, Nat didn’t know. Either way, she already knew what to expect with each member regarding powers.

                Within twenty minutes, she’d changed from her comfy house clothes into a white, long sleeved button-down shirt with a black tie, black skinny jeans, and black converse. The tie and converse were both decorated with grinning, orange jack-o-lanterns, and the shirt had silver bat outlines on it. She streaked her dyed-black hair with spray-on orange dye. Not bright orange, just a nice hint of dark pumpkin pie color against the black of her hair. She tucked everything she might need for an orientation into a nice leather bag with the Exo logo on it. She couldn’t hide her fangirling entirely.

                With seven minutes to spare, Nat signaled for transport to the Prometheus. Most members of the Cooperation in their universe used the transporters they’d gotten from the Federation, but the people higher in the command structure used the Asgard transporters on the Prometheus.

                Nat had to wait a couple minutes before Phil transported in with Mae, Mack, and Simmons. She waved cheerfully, and skipped forward to give Simmons a hug. “Hey, Jemma!” she exclaimed, grinning as Jemma hugged her back.

                “What are you wearing?”

                Nat pulled out of the hug with an incredulous look at Mae. “What’s wrong with what I’m wearing? It’s perfectly nice, and more than good enough for these guys. Trust me. They won’t care.”

                Before Mae could protest further, Phil reminded them that they had an appointment to keep, and they were all transported back down. They were meeting at SM Entertainment headquarters, and Nat had to take a deep breath as they materialized in the lobby. She stuck close to Jemma as they were lead to a conference room.

                All twelve members of Exo were already seated around the long table with their manager. They were talking amongst themselves, mostly in Korean, but Nat could just hear Lay and Luhan, who were seated closest to her, speaking in Mandarin. They all looked up as the group entered, and the manager, Kris and Suho all stood and bowed to greet them. Nat and Mae bowed automatically in return, and the others hesitantly copied them.

                The manager spoke in Korean, and Kris began translating, “Welcome, please have a seat.” They all sat down, and Nat forced herself to look at Suho. She knew she’d get distracted if she focused on Kris, and she needed to pay attention. “We are glad you could join us today. Please, explain what you are here to discuss.”

                Nat took as deep a breath as she could do subtly and shifted her gaze to the manager. Phil typically preferred that she start things off as she was the coordinator for everyone getting along. She began to explain, in perfect Korean, what the Cooperation was about and the benefits of being official members. She could see the surprised reactions of the other members out of the corners of her eyes, but she remained focused. She explained the history of the Cooperation, how she’d come to be a part of it, and how all the groups that participated were able to share things like technology and knowledge with each other.

                “If you agree to join, you will have access to the portals between universes that we have been monitoring since our first contact with the Federation,” Nat said, reaching across the table to hand a packet to the manager. She was temporarily startled when Kris stood to take it, and she forced herself to not look up at him as she continued. “We also have an extensive network of transporters that allow quick access key parts of the world, and facilitate visiting among the members of the Cooperation. We have recently connected with the Wizarding community, who have helped us invent and set up translation spells for places where Universal Translators do not work.”

                Nat saw movement out of the corner of her eye, and looked automatically. Tao had raised his hand, and she turned to him, careful to keep her face as neutral as possible. “What about Time Travel?” he asked.

                Chanyeol elbowed him sharply, and a general air of uneasiness shifted through the room. For the first time, Nat took a good look at everyone at the table. The Exo-M members were looking warily at the Exo-K members who were all glaring uneasily at Tao. “That is carefully monitored by myself and the Doctor. Especially in this universe. I’m sure you, of all people, can understand the need to be certain that it is not abused.”

                He nodded in agreement and the entire group relaxed. _“I understand more than you know,”_ he said quietly in Mandarin.

                Nat smiled at him and replied in the same language, _“I hope you’ll let me know some day.”_ He blinked at her in surprise, but didn’t say anything else, so she continued with her spiel.

                It quickly became clear that all the members of Exo wanted to join the Cooperation. Their manager, however, seemed to be reluctant to agree. When Phil took over for a moment to try and convince him, Nat tried to get in touch with one of her telepathic friends from the SGC. Luckily, Thyra was there and responded quickly.

                _“What’s up? I’m in the middle of something.”_

_“Sorry, this’ll only take a second,”_ Nat replied silently. _“Can you check on Exo’s manager for me? I don’t think he wants them to join the Cooperation.”_ Nat flicked her eyes over the manager’s face so Thyra would know where to look.

                _“You’re right, he doesn’t. He thinks it’ll make Exo want to leave the company if they have someone to back them up.”_

_“Can you tell Kris and Suho that we’ll take them no matter what he says if that’s what they want?”_ Nat glanced at the two men sitting next to each other, and watched as they stiffened in shock at the sudden voice in their heads. After a second, they both locked eyes with Nat. Kris was the first to nod slightly, and Suho quickly followed suit. The two leaders slowly locked eyes with each member of their respective sub groups, gaining nods from each of them. _“Thank you, Thyra. I’ll talk to you when we get back.”_

                Kris and Suho both stood up, gaining everyone’s attention. “We would like to join,” Kris said in English.

The manager sputtered and tried to protest, but Suho shut him down. “This has nothing to do with our contract with the company. This is about us and our powers. You have no say it the matter.”

Nat smiled and stood, reaching across the table to shake his hand. “Welcome to the Cooperation! I look forward to getting to know you all.” Her eyes flickered to Tao as she spoke and she was only mildly surprised to see that he was looking at her as well.


	3. Monster

Chapter Two

Monster

 

It only took a week for the members of Exo to become well-liked members of the Cooperation. Many of them got along splendidly with the campers at Camp Half-Blood, so Nat eagerly invited them to the party on Halloween night.

Now that she was getting to spend time with them, Nat was finding her initial fangirling to be slowly fading as friendship began to take over. She quickly became close friends with Baekhyun, Sehun, DO and Suho. Baekhyun latched onto her almost immediately after the meeting had ended, declaring that he wanted to be good friends. Nat reached out to DO and Sehun on purpose because they’d always been the members she’d been least interested in and she wanted to form a connection. Suho was the one to pull Baekhyun away and asked if there was anything they needed to do now that they’d joined the Cooperation.

Chanyeol and Kai treated her like a little sister almost immediately, and recruited Baekhyun to their cause with little effort. They texted her constantly to check up on her, and called to tell her about their day. Nat loved the attention. Most of the other groups in the Cooperation treated her like a business associate or an acquaintance. The Avengers saw her as someone who needed constant protection or surveillance, but rarely as a friend. The only other groups she often got friend treatment from were the Demigods of Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter, and the Magicians from the House of Life. Even that was more of a casual friend though.

As the Halloween party drew closer, Nat began texting back and forth with Kris, Xiumin, Luhan and Chen to see if any of them wanted to come to the party. She got enthusiastic responses from Chen and Luhan, and a ‘maybe’ from Kris. Luhan said that he was drag Xiumin there if the frost-powered boy tried to back out, and Chen promised to herd Lay and Tao there as well. Having already guaranteed that Exo-K would be attending, Nat began coordinating with her friends in the Wizarding World to set up wards that would keep any monsters from crashing their party. So many Demigods in one place would send up a beacon big enough to attract loads of trouble, especially on Halloween night.

The wards were in place the day before Halloween, and some of the campers came over to help set things up. The decorations were already in place, so it was simply a matter of testing the sound system, checking security, stocking the fridge with sodas, juice, and other drinks, and inventorying the food already stashed in Nat’s expansive pantry.

Nat was working with Annabeth on the inventory when her phone began ringing. She stepped aside for a moment so that she could answer. “Hello, Natasha speaking.”

There was a short pause, and then, “Hello, Natasha. This is Tao.”

Nat blinked in shock and braced herself against the wall. When she spoke next, it was in Mandarin. _“It’s nice to hear from you! What’s going on?”_

She could hear the relief in his voice as he switched to Mandarin as well, _“I wanted to make sure you were still planning on having your party tomorrow night.”_

_ “Absolutely! Are you going to come? You know you’re more than welcome.” _

_ “Yes. We all plan to come, actually. We were wondering if there were any requirements.” _

_ “Just make sure everyone is in costume. It doesn’t have to be elaborate, but there will be a contest judged by the Aphrodite cabin so, if you want to win, there should be obvious effort. Although, seeing as most of the people attending will be Demigods or Magicians, best to avoid any Greek, Roman, or Egyptian gods or monsters.” _

_ “We will keep that in mind. Thank you. We will see you tomorrow.” _

Nat suddenly heard a scuffling sound, and shouts before she had to yank the phone away from her ear as Baekhyun’s voice came shrieking out of the speaker, “NATASHA!!! I want to invite some other friends too, can they come?!”

Nat carefully brought the phone close enough to her mouth to speak, “Yes, you may. Just make sure they wear costumes. No one gets in the door without a costume.” She held the phone away at arms’ length again as Baekhyun screamed out his thanks and then finally hung up. She sucked in a deep breath and let it out in a whoosh as she returned to helping Annabeth.

“What was that?” the other girl asked with a grin, indicating that she already knew exactly what had happened.

“Shut up, Annabeth,” Nat growled playfully. The daughter of Athena laughed, and the two of them returned to their work.

~~~~~

The apartment was already full of people when Exo showed up with their guests. Nat was happy to see that all twelve members had come, and she hurried over to greet them. Her costume was an authentic Chinese Princess dress complete with shoes. Her short hair had been looped around and pinned, then decorated with glittering jewel pins. She bowed in greeting, smiling eagerly as she rose up again.

Her expression froze when she saw who Baekhyun’s friends were. Towering over her by half a foot was Kim Namjoon, the leader of BTS. Taehyung was leaning over Baekhyun’s shoulder, his mouth open in a gaping grin at the large, decorated living room. Hoseok and Jimin were on either side of Yoongi who looked like he was trying to hide his excitement. Jin was the last to be visible as he came in after shutting the door behind the large group.

Baekhyun screamed in excitement, rushed forward and wrapped his arms around Nat’s stunned frame. She could barely register his excited greetings as he flailed around her. Finally, she grabbed his shoulders to hold him still. “Oppa, you should have told me who you were bringing!” The Korean words came out in a rush as she stared wide-eyed into his face.

He finally stopped moving and considered her frozen face. Slowly, he gently griped her arms. “Are you alright? You said it was fine to bring friends.”

Nat’s eyes flickered to the men still standing in an awkward group by the door. She didn’t know what to do. It was ridiculous! She should be able to handle this. Why was she freaking out over her other favorite K-pop group when she’d already mostly gotten over the fact that she was friends with Exo?!

Before she could break down completely, Nico DiAngelo appeared next to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. “I think it would be best for her to take a moment,” he said calmly to Baekhyun. “You all enjoy the party, I’ll bring her back when she’s calmer.” Nico carefully steered her out of Baekhyun’s grip and toward the stairs to her bedroom.

While the Demigods distracted the confused Korean boys, Nico gently sat Nat down on her bed. “Nat, breathe.”

Nat sucked in a ragged breath, closing her eyes and trying to calm down. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me,” she whispered.

“It’s alright,” Nico assured her, patting her shoulder. “You’ve been pretty overwhelmed lately. With all the work you’ve been doing, and planning this party, and overcoming your normal fangirl tendencies with Exo, you just couldn’t handle the sudden appearance of any more famous people.”

“My fangirl side is battling with my practical side, is basically what you’re saying.”

Nico smirked, “Basically.”

Nat groaned and let herself fall back on her bed. “What am I going to do?”

Nico laughed. “You are going to take a few minutes to calm down, and then come back down and rejoin the party that you worked very hard to plan and organize.”

“Will you stay with me?”

“Nope! Will is waiting for me. He’s ridiculously happy about our costumes and wants to show them off.”

Nat lifted her head to inspect Nico’s costume. He was dressed in all black which wasn’t surprising, but he also had black runes drawn on his skin and bow and quiver slung over his shoulder. She laughed and let her head fall back again. “Magnus and Alec will be flattered. I look forward to seeing Will’s costume.” Nico rolled his eyes, but left without saying anything in reply.

Nat remained on her bed for about five minutes, letting her brain recover from the sudden introduction of more of her favorite artists. When she felt she could safely return to the party, she stood up, smoothed her dress and checked her hair, then walked out onto the balcony overlooking the living room below.

All seven members of BTS and all twelve of Exo were scattered throughout the room chatting with various Demigods and Magicians. The Aphrodite cabin had cornered Jin, and Nat was just about to go down and distract them when the song changed. A cheer went up from Exo as their song, Monster, began playing over the speakers. Within seconds, the center of the floor had cleared, and the boys were dancing. It started out serious and perfect, but then Taehyung and Jimin joined them and things began to lighten up. They laughed as they tripped over each other, and dragged in the other BTS members.

A few people from the Apollo cabin began clumsily copying the movements and, by the time the song ended, everyone was laughing and clapping and enjoying themselves. While everyone was distracted, Nat made her way down the stairs and rejoined the crowd. When the song changed to something else, she wove through and located Namjoon. She bowed in greeting once she had his attention. “I apologize for my outburst earlier,” she said politely. “I’m afraid I was a bit overwhelmed by the preparations for this party, and it all came crashing down on me at once.”

Namjoon smiled at her, and it took all she had to not melt into a puddle. She’d always loved his smile, the way it revealed the deep dimples in his cheeks and simply how big it was in the first place. “It’s no problem. _I_ apologize. We should have confirmed with our host if it was alright to attend.”

Nat shook her head, quickly dismissing his concerns. “I told Baekhyun-Oppa that it was alright to bring friends. I should have considered who his friends would be.” Having each assured the other that everything was alright, Namjoon took Nat around to the other members and introduced her. Taehyung and Hosoek turned out to be the easiest ones to see as friends. Taehyung acted much like Baekhyun. He was hyper and excited, and both boys had clearly had already raided the snack table by how much they were bouncing around.

Jin was extremely charming and had Nat giggling and blushing with his compliments about her dress. Jungkook was adorable, calling her Noona and making her laugh with Aegyo before she shooed him away to enjoy the rest of the party.

Yoongi and Jimin, on the other hand, seemed to be enjoying her struggle as she tried to keep herself in check around them. Other than Namjoon and Taehyung, they were the two she’d been most attracted to and had the most difficulty choosing a favorite from. Yoongi kept appearing beside her as she chatted with other party guests, slinging his arm around her shoulders and hiding his grin as her speech faltered. Jimin was basically following her around, constantly asking her questions and trying to monopolize her time.

It was almost midnight when a slow song came on. It was one of Tao’s songs, The Road. Nat’s eyes scanned the crowd automatically, hoping idly that Tao wouldn’t mind. She was startled when Tao suddenly appeared beside her, holding out his hand. _“May I have this dance?”_ He asked gently, the Mandarin words cutting perfectly through the opening notes of the song. Jimin pouted and started to protest, but Nat eagerly took his hand.

They swayed slowly to the music. _“Thank you for the rescue,”_ Nat said quietly.

 _“Of course. That wasn’t the only reason I did it, though.”_ Nat looked up at his face for the first time since they’d begun dancing. His eyes were gazing down into hers with an intensity that she’d never seen before.

_ “Oh really? Did you want to talk about something?” _

Tao tilted his head slightly, and spun her around as the song reached its crescendo. _“I was wondering if you could introduce me to the Doctor. There are some things that I need to discuss with him.”_

Nat smiled as she spun back to him. _“Of course. He’d love to talk to you. With any luck, you’ll get one who will actually be helpful and not freak out over your powers.”_

Tao nodded and spun her once more, dipping her as the song ended. Nat gazed up into his eyes, wondering what he was thinking. He was impassive though, and they simply bowed to each other as the next song began. Nat was about to say something else, but was interrupted as Baekhyun and Taehyung suddenly grabbed onto her from each side. “Yaaa! Natasha! Is Zitao being nice to you? He’d better be.”

Nat laughed, wrapping her arm around his back to grip his opposite shoulder. “Of course he’s being nice! How could you think anything else?”

Taehyung’s long hands petted carefully at the short hairs on the back of her head. “We want to have fun with you now,” he pouted. “Make him go away.”

Nat frowned at him, “That was rude.”

Tao waved away her concerns though. “I will leave you to it. Have fun.” He bowed and left. Nat tried to say something, but Taehyung’s eager voice drowned her out.

He was just about to drag her onto the dance floor, when the lights suddenly shut off. Almost before Nat could blink, Chanyeol had seemingly materialized beside Baekhyun with a ball of fire in his hand. The taller boy wrapped his arm protectively around his friend’s shoulders, hugging him to his side.

Nat wanted to ask what was wrong, but she had other things she needed to work on first. She stood up on a chair, so her voice would carry better, “If I could have everyone’s attention please! Head Councilors, Prefects, and Magicians, if you could join me upstairs for a moment, we’ll see about getting this sorted out. Namjoon, Kris, Suho, if you all could come as well, I think that would be wise.”

Nat waited patiently on the balcony for the leaders she’d called to join her. Namjoon left Jin in charge of their group, Kris appointed Xiumin, and Suho nominated DO. Once all the leaders were up with her, she led them into her room. With the doors closed, Nat hurried to the window to check the lights nearby. “We have a problem. The other floors still have lights on. This is a targeted attack. Check phones.” Everyone who had one, pulled out their phones and checked them. No screens lit up. Nat cringed when not even her Stark Phone lit up.

“Whoever planed this has some serious equipment,” Nat told them, her voice obviously trying to conceal her concern. “They’re blocking my Stark Phone.”

“Mine too,” Annabeth added.

“Ok,” Nat took a deep breath and began giving instructions. “Kris, Namjoon, if you two could start getting everyone who can’t fight into the Safe Room. The code is 879630. Suho, figure out who can and should fight from your two groups and get them organized. Carter, Sadie, Annabeth and Percy, work with Suho to get everyone in your groups who can and should fight organized in the living room. Everyone else, work with Kris and Namjoon to get the others in the Safe Room and then join us in the living room. The Safe Room has its own power and phones, so tell the ones who go there to get in contact with Tony and the other Avengers to come give us some back up. We don’t know who or what is attacking us yet, or how they cut the power, so it’s best to be prepared.”

Everyone nodded and began dispersing. Nat joined the ones in the living room and opened a compartment in the wall to reveal a variety of weapons. Everyone began grabbing what they needed. Once she’d armed herself with a bow and quiver of arrows, Nat located Baekhyun and Chanyeol, both of whom were still hovering around the edge of the living room. “Are you guys ok?”

Chanyeol looked down at Baekhyun, and grimaced, “He doesn’t want to go into the Safe Room. Scared it will be dark and small and crowded.”

Nat smiled gently at the smaller boy who was huddled into Chanyeol’s side. “Trust me, it’s not dark or crowded. And certainly not small. How about I show you?” Baekhyun nodded reluctantly, and Nat led him to the Safe Room. His eyes widened when he saw the huge space through the door. Despite the number of people who’d already entered the room, there was plenty of space left. He entered without hesitation, and visibly relaxed when he entered the light-filled space. Chanyeol was about to follow him, but Nat placed her hand on his arm. “We could probably use you out here.” Chanyeol nodded reluctantly, and followed her back out to the living room.

They had just gotten the Safe Room sealed when the front door smashed down and two huge Cyclopes thundered in with their clubs swinging. Nat’s eyes widened, and she shoved Chanyeol back. His fire would be no use here.

If they hadn’t had so many Demigods and Magicians there, they would’ve had a harder time with the huge creatures in a confined space. Especially when a couple of harpies came in after them and Chanyeol finally got to roast them with his flames. Leo was eager to talk with the fire-wielder, but Nat insisted that socialization wait until they were sure no more monsters were going to show up.

When Tony finally arrived with back up, Nat relaxed. Most of the people left as soon as the doors opened to let them out of the Safe Room, but Annabeth stayed behind. “I thought you said the wards would keep the monsters away!”

“They should’ve worked! I was assured they would work!” Nat was just as upset as Annabeth. “I trusted them. We’ve seen that their magic is compatible with you guys, it should’ve worked perfectly. I’ll have to have a talk with them. Something is going on. Those monsters somehow took out the power and jammed our phones. This is no coincidence.”

Nat was staying in the Tower for the night, so as she followed Tony out the smashed door, she frowned in worry. It didn’t make sense for the monsters to have gotten through. She would have to get to the bottom of it soon.


	4. The Eve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Korean is underlined.  
> Chinese is underlined and italicized.
> 
> If you recognize anything, I don't own it.

Chapter Three

The Eve

 

Nat’s apartment was big for one person. The living room was designed with floor to ceiling windows that had the sunlight pouring into the house. The light crept over the balcony and probed at Nat’s bedroom door. It had better success reaching her from through her curtains, slicing its way through the dimness of the rest of the room and tickling at her face.

A complaining meow woke her more than the intruding sun. Arwen batted at Nat’s face and she turned away from insistent paw only to find her face buried in a furry tummy. She groaned and sat up, “You two are way to insistent for this early in the morning.”

It had been two weeks since the disaster Halloween party. Nat hadn’t been able to talk to Baekhyun in person about what had happened. Exo were very busy with preparations for the MAMA Awards and the initial work for their next winter album. Nat was excited to hear the new music, but even Chanyeol refused to divulge any spoilers.

A furry head butted hard against her arm and Nat turned to glare at the female of her cats. “Alright, alright! I’m going.” She climbed out of bed and pulled on her soft robe as she headed out the door and downstairs. The food and water bowls in the kitchen were empty, so she filled them up then began getting her own breakfast.

A chime from the monitor above the sink made her turn from the stove. “Answer!”

“Nat! We have a problem.”

“What’s up Phil?”

“The wizards are getting restless. They don’t like that you haven’t spoken to them since Halloween.”

Nat turned back to her eggs and flipped them over as she responded, “Yeah, well, I trusted them to keep us safe, and their wards failed. I should’ve asked Magnus to come over and do it. Or just told the Magicians to put some up. I wanted to be inclusive. Look where that got me.”

“Well, be more inclusive. Pick a couple of our newest members and go talk to them.”

Nat turned off the stove and turned back to face the monitor with an incredulous look on her face. “Do you have any idea the amount of work Exo need to do right now? The MAMA Awards are coming up, they’re working on their winter album, they need to rest at some point. Besides, it’s already getting late over there. It wouldn’t be fair to ask them to come over now.”

“At least call and ask. If they aren’t available, take some Campers. Whatever the case, get over there ASAP and work things out.” Phil cut the connection immediately, not giving her a chance to argue further.

Nat let out a soft scream of frustration and banged on the counter. A chastising yowl came from the food bowls on the floor. “You, shut it!” Nat yelled at Arwen. A softer mew from the counter gained her attention. Daniel batted at her arm with a soft paw, then rubbed his head against her arm, purring. Nat took a deep breath and tried to calm down. “I’m sorry, Arwen. I didn’t mean it.”

With a sigh, Nat bolted down the hot eggs, then pulled her phone out of her pocket. She scrolled through the numbers until she found Suho’s and pressed the call button. Nat was surprised when he picked up almost immediately. “Natasha! It’s good to hear from you!”

“Hey, Suho! I’m surprised you picked up so quickly. Is everything okay?”

“It’s been a bit of a rough day. Yifan had a fight with our manager about his new solo track, Yixing and Tao got into a fight over a similar thing, Baekhyun would not stop whining about wanting to go to America to see you and watch BTS in the American Music Awards,” he took a deep breath and slowed down. “Sorry.”

“No need to apologize! I shouldn’t have bothered you.”

“No! Please, I need the distraction. What were you calling about?”

Nat hesitated, before answering. Suho sounded really stressed out. It was quiet in the background of his side, but she wondered how long that would last. “The wizards want to see me about what happened at the Halloween party,” she finally told him. “Phil wanted me to see if I could get a couple escorts from you guys. If you can’t, it’s totally fine!” she assured him quickly. “I can ask a couple of the Campers to come instead.”

“With everything going on, it would actually be good for a couple of them to get out for an hour or so. Give me a chance to try and calm things down. How about Yifan and Yixing? I’d send Tao, but that would be more like a reward, and he was the one to start everything, so better to not encourage him.”

“That sounds good to me,” Nat replied, hoping that her voice didn’t sound _too_ happy about it.  “How long do you need to get them ready?”

“Ten minutes? We already have one of those transporter pads, just tell me where to send them.”

“The Empire State Building. I’ll meet them there.”

“Sounds like a plan. Thank you, Natasha. You may have just saved me from going insane tonight.”

When Nat hung up, she sighed in sympathy. She wished there was something she could do to help Suho. Things had been getting more and more tense between Exo and SM Entertainment as Tao’s, Luhan’s, Kris’ and Lay’s solo careers continued to get bigger and better. There had been rumors a few years ago, around the time Kris released his first solo single Bad Girl, that he was sick and was thinking of leaving the group. When nothing had happened, most people had brushed it off as nothing but a rumor. Nat now wondered if it really had been nothing but speculation.

Daniel meowed at her, jolting her out of her thoughts. She had less than ten minutes to get dressed and meet Kris and Lay at the Empire State Building! She scrambled upstairs and yanked on a pair of black leggings, a yellow turtleneck sweater, a mid-thigh length grey skirt, knee-high grey boots, and a long coat. She ran a brush through her hair, strapped on her communication watch and snatched up her small leather backpack. After a quick inventory to make sure she had everything she needed, she tapped the teleport button on her watch and vanished in a flash of light.

She’d barely finished materializing when she found herself enveloped in long, strong arms. Yixing was only four and a half inches taller than her, so he didn’t really swamp her like Chanyeol did, but he was wearing a fluffy scarf and the material of his coat was thick and warm.

Nat brought her arms up to return the hug as his voice whispered in her ear, _“Thank you, Natasha. Thank you. I couldn’t stand it another minute.”_

Nat patted his back soothingly, assuring him that she was glad she could help. Finally, he released her from the hug only to move to stand beside her and capture her hand in his. Nat didn’t mind. She liked Yixing. His hand was warm and just enough bigger than hers that the warmth could soak into her skin easily.

Yifan was standing a short distance away, his hands in his pockets. He had his flat, ‘Cold guy’ look firmly in place on his face, so Nat decided not to ask him about anything just yet. _“We should get going. I don’t think Phil told them to expect me at any particular time, but…”_ she trailed off. Yifan simply nodded, so Nat turned toward the door and led them out onto the street.

Both boys were wearing hats and masks as well as their scarves and long coats, Nat didn’t have a hat, but her coat had a hood, so she briefly let go of Yixing’s hand to pull it up and slip on her own mask that she kept in her pocket. It was a slightly unusual sight in New York City, but it was much safer to wear them than not. Exo fans were nearly as relentless and prevalent as BTS fans, and the last thing they needed was to be spotted.

As they approached the building housing the Magical Congress of the United States of America, Yixing tugged Nat closer to his side. She wondered what had happened to make him so clingy. They had become good friends, but she didn’t have the same kind of relationship with him as with Baekhyun or Chanyeol, or even DO or Sehun.

She shrugged it off and tapped a brief beat on the doorframe before entering the building and removed her mask with her free hand. The two boys drifted a little bit as they gazed around at the amazing building, but quickly caught back up at the security desk. “Natasha Higgins, I was called in to talk about the incident at Halloween.”

The wizard behind the counter nodded and flicked his eyes over the two boys behind her. “Who are they?”

“My escorts, Wu Yifan and Zhang Yixing. They are members of Exo and, therefore, members of the Cooperation.”

The man nodded again, “Are any of you carrying weapons?” Nat shook her head and glanced at Yifan and Yixing questioningly and they both copied her motion of denial. The wizard handed them all badges and began leading them toward a hallway. Nat clipped the badge to the lapel on her coat, and the boys followed suit.

The gold-colored halls were impressive, and Nat was glad to see that both her escorts were managing to keep their focus on following her rather than admiring the architecture. When they entered the conference room they were led to, the managed quite the impressive entrance with their long coats fluttering just so in the wind from their walking speed. Yifan always looked impressive with his stoic expression and effortless style. Yixing tossed his hair out of his eyes just as they entered, allowing for a perfect cool look. And Nat’s short, tousled hair still had bits of blue dye in it from the day before that caught the light and highlighted her as the leader. She was ready for whatever was about to come.

~~~~~~~

Kris POV

~~~~~~~

Yifan’s eyes swept the room as they entered, Nat taking the lead like she was born for it. There were only two people waiting for them, a woman and a man. The man was tall with greying hair and neatly trimmed beard. The woman was only a few inches taller than Nat, her dark hair gathered back in an elegant bun-ponytail thing. The woman turned toward them and nodded in greeting. “Welcome to the Magical Congress of the United States. I am Tatiana Void, head of the Department of Interuniversal Cooperation. This is Leland Vonner, an Auror. He’s been investigating what happened on Halloween.”

Nat bowed in response to Tatiana’s greeting, and Yifan and Yixing followed suit. “What have you found?” Yifan was surprised at the coldness in Nat’s voice. She usually seemed to be such a mellow person, he wondered why she was being this way.

“We examined the scene. It appears someone tampered with the wards.”

“No kidding. I could’ve told you that without examination. If you’ve dragged me here just to repeat things I already know-,”

Tatiana shook her head quickly, sending her ponytail swinging. “We have a few suspects. There is a group of Pureblood wizards that opposes the wizarding community joining this Cooperation. We believe they were behind the attack.”

Nat frowned and nodded. Yifan copied her movements. “They couldn’t’ve done this on their own,” he said, making Void and Vonner jump slightly. “They might’ve been able to sabotage the wards, but even Nat’s Stark Phone was blocked. The power went out. All her other security systems were bypassed. There must’ve been more to it than a few rogue wizards.”

“Who are you again?” Vonner asked, sounding annoyed.

“Wu Yifan, Leader of Exo-M. I was at the party. There was something else at work there that night.”

“That may be so,” Void replied. “But we found out who was responsible on our end. And we’re reporting it to you. That’s all we’re required to do.”

Yifan felt like strangling the woman. How could she be taking this so lightly? Didn’t she realized what it meant that people were working together to get around all the security measures that Nat had in place? He was about to say something to that effect, when there was a loud bang. He instinctively leapt toward Nat to shield her from whatever was happening, but it was already to late. Someone else grabbed her and yanked her away. She screamed, and he leapt into the air to get better maneuverability. It was a mistake. Something hit him almost immediately. He crashed to the ground, barely aware of the pain as he landed, as stiff as a board, on the floor.

He lay there, unable to move. Only able to stare blankly up at the ceiling and listen. He heard Yixing’s voice shouting, demanding that Nat be released. There were several sizzling sounds, and a flash of something flickered through his mind. Something he’d tried to bury after they’d found this place. He wanted to shake it away. He needed to focus on the moment at hand. Nat was in trouble! He had to help her! But he was stuck, helpless as silence fell around him. He remembered white walls and white ceilings and white clothes. Black numbers stitched into stiff collars. Red visors over expressionless faces.

Suddenly, he could move again. He shook away the images in his mind and blinked up at the witch gazing down at him with concern. “Where is Nat?” he asked instantly. The woman didn’t answer, only looked at him sadly. “Call SHIELD,” he told her, sitting up slowly. “We need to get her back.”


	5. Heart Attack

Chapter Four

Heart Attack

 

Yixing blinked slowly, his eyes coming into focus on the concerned face that was too close to his own. Luhan’s soft features were creased with worry, and his voice was soft as he asked Yixing if he was okay. The younger man slowly shook his head. He couldn’t believe Nat had been kidnapped right in front of them. He and Yifan had been supposed to protect her. That was what they were there for, right? To keep their unofficial member safe.

He glanced around the room, his eyes landing on a small group consisting of Baekhyun, Chanyeol and Jongdae. They were all muttering to each other and looking murderous. Yixing cringed guiltily, shrinking into Luhan’s side. The older man wrapped his arm around Yixing’s shoulders, _“No one blames you. They’re angry at the people who took her, and the wizards who let their security lapse again. No one thinks this is your fault,”_ he assured him.

Yixing glanced around again, this time searching for Yifan. He was sitting a short distance away, speaking angrily with the witch and wizard who’d been in the room with them, as well as Suho and Kyungsoo. Yixing continued his scan of the room and frowned when he saw Jongin and Zitao. They were standing near where the people had vanished with Nat. They were both examining the air, moving their fingers like they were tracing invisible patterns in the space. _“What are they doing?”_ he asked Luhan, sitting up and gesturing toward the pair. Luhan frowned as well and shrugged. They both stood and went to ask.

“We can see where they went,” Jongin explained. The teleporter had moved slightly, tracing his fingers in long lines beside where Zitao was still standing.

The room went quiet. Even the trio of concerned brothers turned to listen. “How?” Yifan asked, standing and walking over to join them.

“I can see the trail left behind from their apparition,” Jongin replied. “Zitao can see the Time Dust or whatever it is that Nat has clinging to her. If we can find someone with the right sensors to scan for it, we can give them the readings they’d need to find where Nat was taken.”

“Only the Doctor has the type of sensors that we need,” Zitao said, speaking slowly so the words came out properly. He turned to the wizards, “Do you have the Doctor’s number?”

Vonner blinked at him in surprise. “Why would we have that? We don’t use cellphones.”

Yifan was about to tell him off. There was no need for that. But he was interrupted when someone else swept into the room. “You may not have phones, but we do.” Phil Coulson entered the room, followed closely by FitzSimmons, Melinda Mae and Mack.

Mae held out her phone to Zitao, “Here, the number is already dialed.”

Zitao blinked at her in surprise. He didn’t take the phone, only stood there, frozen and confused. Yifan snatched the phone instead. His big hand patted Zitao’s shoulder, _“Do you want to talk to the Doctor, or do you just want me to call?”_ Zitao nodded at him, gesturing with his chin that he wanted Yifan to make the call. The older man nodded reassuringly, and pressed the call button.

Yixing wasn’t sitting close enough to hear what was said on the other end of the phone, but he could hear Yifan’s side of it. Their leader explained what had happened and asked if the Doctor could help. After a brief pause, he said where they were and then hung up the phone.

They only had to wait a few moments before a wheezing sound began echoing throughout the room. Zitao’s frozen form suddenly moved as he staggered, barely managing to catch onto the edge of the table to keep himself from falling to the floor. Yixing stood quickly and ran to his side, gripping his arm and reaching out with his senses to find what was wrong.

Zitao’s body lit up in his eyes as he slipped through each layer, scanning for damage. The golden energy that usually flowed through Zitao’s veins had slowed to a sluggish trickle. Yixing scanned quickly upward toward Zitao’s brain and was shocked at what he saw. The energy had concentrated in the part of the brain that Zitao used to access his powers. Yixing had always assumed that the energy came from there, but now he wasn’t so sure. There were strands of it escaping from Zitao’s head, and Yixing followed them with his eyes. With a final thud, the TARDIS landed, and Yixing gasped. The box was saturated with the same golden energy!

Once the ship had fully materialized, Zitao straightened in Yixing’s grip. The healer turned his attention back to his friend and scanned him again. The energy was quickly redistributing through Zitao’s body the way it should. Yifan’s concerned face appeared suddenly and Yixing blinked hard to cancel his scan. A wave of exhaustion washed over him, and he shifted to sit in one of the chairs so that he didn’t fall over either. Minsoek and Luhan appeared on either side of him like bodyguards. He couldn’t bring himself to protest.

The door of the TARDIS opened and a tall, lanky man with crazy brown hair and a blue suit stepped out. A woman with long red hair followed him, her eyes widening when she saw what was around her. Yifan and Suho approached the pair, their faces serious. Yifan explained what had happened. _“Zitao and Jongin can see where the wizards disappeared from, but they cannot follow the trail themselves. They can, however tell you what to look for with your sensors. Zitao said you were the only one with the type of sensors we’d need.”_

 _“Really? And what sensors are those exactly?”_ the Doctor asked, peering around Yifan’s shoulder to look at Zitao directly.

 _“Time sensors,”_ Zitao replied, drawing himself up to his full height and walking forward. Jongin joined him from where he’d still been examining the area where the wizards had disappeared. _“If you can show us how to input the parameters, we should be able to use your sensors to track where the wizards took her.”_

                The Doctor nodded. _“Come on then. The sooner we find her, the sooner she’ll be safe.”_ Without another word, he turned and went back into the TARDIS. Everyone stared, confused. He popped his head back out. _“Come on! All of you. Well… all the members of Exo.”_ He disappeared again, and everyone stood quickly to follow him.

                Yixing held onto Minsoek’s arm as they all piled through the door, ignoring the attempted protests of the SHIELD agents and shutting it in their faces. The Doctor seemed disappointed when no one commented on the room being bigger on the inside. But Zitao and Jongin were already approaching the console. He showed them where to put the parameters in and quickly set the TARDIS off on the path to find Nat.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

                Being inside the TARDIS was a bit overwhelming for Zitao. Just having the ship materialize nearby had been a shock to his Time senses. Being inside was both better and worse. He could hear the ship speaking. She was trying to soothe him, aware that his senses were already raw. Once he’d given the Doctor what he needed for his side of things, he was prompted down the hallway and into a room only a couple doors down.

                As soon as he entered, he relaxed immediately. It was like walking into a dead zone. His agitated senses calmed almost instantly. _“Thank you,”_ he whispered. The barest whisper of acknowledgement crept through the door. He smiled and sat down on the floor, cross-legged, closed his eyes, and settled into light meditation.

                He was surprised when he came out of the trance and an entire half hour had passed. Someone was knocking on the door. _“Zitao, we’re here!”_ Yifan’s voice sounded urgent. Zitao stood quickly, feeling refreshed.

When he opened the door, he blinked up at Yifan. _“I’m ready. Let’s get her back.”_ He didn’t give Yifan a chance to say anything else. He simply walked by and out to the console room and went to check on Yixing. The healer was still looking a little pale, but he could stand on his own.

The Doctor was looking at the scanner, examining the area outside the TARDIS. There weren’t any enemies visible, but that didn’t mean they weren’t out there. He frowned at the display when a sudden beeping lit up an area of the cliff rising above them. “That is VERY not good,” he murmured quietly. It wasn’t quiet enough.

“What is it?” Baekhyun, Chanyeol and Jongdae crowded around the scanner first and the rest followed quickly.

The Doctor tapped the screen in the spot the scanner was indicating. “The scanner has picked something up just there.” Everyone leaned in close, trying to see what it was that the scanner had seen.

Zitao was the first one to leave the ship. He didn’t say a word, he simply ran out the door. It didn’t take long for him to hear the rest of the group following him quickly, but he wasn’t paying attention to them. He was focused on the ledge about half-way up the cliff. He couldn’t see how wide it was from this angle, but he knew it wasn’t anywhere near large enough for a person to lye on comfortably. And yet there was a body lying on it. Their back was facing outward, so they could hug the cliff with their body, not that it did much good. A person could only remain tense for so long before their body gave out from fatigue.

“Sung Ah!” Baekhyun’s terrified voice cut through the otherwise still air like a shot. Zitao had heard in passing about the Korean name the others had given their unofficial member, but couldn’t help flinching a little at the sound of it. Had they forgotten? Had they all buried the past so deeply in their minds that they didn’t remember the last person they’d known who had that name?

He shook the dark thoughts away as Yifan leapt into the sky and shot toward the spot on the cliff. The Doctor shouted at him, but it was too late. Yifan suddenly bounced off an energy field of some kind. He wobbled in the air and Zitao saw Jongin step forward, prepared to help if needed, but the flyer stabilized on his own.

The Doctor whipped out his sonic screwdriver and pointed it up at the cliff. After a brief buzzing, he lowered it and looked at the readings. He frowned. _“They have some spells in place to prevent people getting to her. We’ll have to disable them before we can get her down.”_

Yifan had yet to return to the ground and was, instead, hovering as close to Nat as he could get. Zitao wished there was something he could do to help, but he couldn’t think of anything. “Jongin,” he called, stepping next to the teleporter. “Can you get inside the spells?”

“Unless they included anti-aparition wards, I might,” he replied, turning eagerly to the Doctor.

As he did so, something flickered on the edges of Zitao’s senses. He walked closer to the cliff and looked up. There was something inside the wards. Something Time related. These wizards were far to well-equipped. They didn’t have enough experience with Time to do anything with this level of sophistication.

“ _Ge ge!”_ he called. Yifan looked down at him and floated to within hearing distance. _“Can you take me up? I need to be closer.”_ Yifan frowned, but obliged, hoisting him up onto his back so he could fly the two of them closer to the area.

Once he was close, Zitao could see the effects of the Time distortion. It was speeding the time within the bubble of the spells. He reached out and carefully touched the boundaries of the spells. A tingle ran up his arm, but he could also feel the edges of the distortion. He grasped at them, closing his eyes in concentration. He clenched his fist, firmly gripping the distortion and yanked at it. It shivered and stretched, trying to maintain it’s effects. He pushed more power into his grip and yanked again. This time, the distortion shattered, piercing through the spells at the same time.

Since Yifan was occupied, Jongin teleported up and grabbed her up in his arms. The instant they were all back on the ground, they all rushed her inside the TARDIS. While the Doctor got them into the Time Vortex, the boys rushed her back into the infirmary.

Yixing got her settled and hooked up to the correct machines. He wanted to scan her himself, but Luhan was watching him too closely. After already having used his powers once that day, trying again would only hurt him more. He checked the mechanical scans instead.

When the Doctor came in, he checked the scans himself. They weren’t good. Because of the distortion speeding up time, Nat had technically been up on the cliff longer than she’d really been gone. She had hypothermia, and her body was exhausted both from the effort of staying up on the ledge, and from her fear of heights. They all agreed that moving her anywhere other than the infirmary would likely be a bad idea, so Yixing helped the Doctor hook up an IV and various other equipment and they all settled down to wait.

Zitao’s thoughts turned once again to the distortion. It had felt familiar. A part of his past that he’d hoped never to think of again. How could it be here? They’d sealed the portal to this universe when they came through. Hadn’t they?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas!
> 
> Yes, I know, this chapter takes place before Thanksgiving. But that's because that's when I started writing this part. It just took me longer to write than anticipated. You'll get more chapters after Christmas. Even though this is a holiday story, I anticipate it taking a bit to finish. I'm not rushing myself this time. I'm just writing everything that I wanted to write the last time. I hope you all enjoy and have very Happy Holidays!


	6. Walk on Memories

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a large section in this chapter where Tao is talking in Chinese the whole time. Since it's so big, I didn't do my usual formatting of the text to indicate Chinese being spoken. Hope that doesn't confuse anyone.
> 
> Also, thank you to every one who has read the story so far and bookmarked it. I hope you all continue to have as much fun reading this as I do writing it.

Chapter Five

Walk on Memories

 

Nat woke slowly, blinking to focus on the white tiles above her. She didn’t quite understand where she was. There was a strange beeping sound off to one side, and pressure on her hands. She tried to lift one to rub at her face, but the pressure kept them in place.

Sound suddenly exploded around her. Faces appeared in her field of vision. “Sung Ah!” She flinched at the loud noise, and Baekhyun’s face fell. “Sorry, sorry! We’ve been so worried.”

Nat blinked again, clearing her vision finally and focusing on his face. “It’s alright,” she told him. Or tried to. Her voice was so hoarse, she could only just manage a whisper. The Korean words stuttered across her tongue, barely audible.

A hand smoothed across her face, and she looked to see who it was. Yixing’s soft features peered down at her from the opposite side of the bed. She glared at him furiously. _“If you dare…”_ she said with as much volume and venom as she could muster.

He sheepishly pulled his hand away. _“I’ll go find a nurse.”_ He left the room without anymore complaints, and Nat relaxed back into her pillows and looked around at the other members gathered around her. She frowned when she saw that four were missing. Zitao, Yifan, Kyungsoo and Minseok were nowhere to be seen.

She didn’t want to try talking again, so she lifted her free hand and waved the pointer finger back and forth with a questioning look on her face and mouthed the word ‘where.’ Luckily, the Sign Language signs were the same, and Luhan responded. _“Once we moved you to the hospital, it was to difficult for them. They’ll be there when you get out, but for now…”_ Nat nodded. She still hadn’t gotten to sit down with any of them and get the story of how they’d gotten to this universe from their own, and she didn’t want to push them.

Yixing returned with a nurse and the doctor who both gestured for the group of boys to step back from the bed. They began examining her, checking her vitals and feeling her throat. “Your vocal chords feel a bit swollen,” the doctor told her. “Were you screaming at all?” She shrugged and lifted one hand holding her thumb and forefinger slightly apart. He frowned and nodded. “We’ll need to run some tests to determine what’s wrong. I’ll go and get those scheduled. In the meantime, try and drink some water. And don’t speak. We’ll get you a pen and some paper, so you can write what you need to say.”

Nat signed ‘thank you’ and Luhan translated for her. Once the doctor and nurse had left, everyone settled back down in their seats. A few pulled out phones, likely to text various people to inform them of her status. After she’d drunk a little water, she drifted back to sleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

The rest of the day passed in a blur of naps and tests. Nat had apparently picked up a bit of a cold while up on the cliff, unsurprisingly, and that was what was taking her voice. She spent the rest of the time, when not napping or being poked at, playing various games with the members who could be with her. She missed Zitao though. She missed the others as well, but Tao had been her bias almost since the beginning, and she couldn’t help having a special soft spot for him.

The members were forced to leave when visiting hours ended, despite Nat’s pleading for the doctor to let them stay. She didn’t want to be alone. It wasn’t that she was scared… necessarily, she just didn’t like the idea of only being surrounded by strangers.

She woke in the middle of the night. At first, she thought it was a nurse checking on her, but something wasn’t right about that. She lay there silently, trying to hear what had woken her. Then she realized. Time. Something was different about Time. Traveling with the Doctor had given her some rudimentary Time senses, but she couldn’t tell exactly what was going on, just that something was wrong.

Nat finally opened her eyes and looked around the room. It was dark, with only a little light filtering through the mostly closed door to the hallway. At first, she couldn’t see anything out of place. Then she spotted the dark shape sitting in the chair Baekhyun had vacated. A soft light began to glow in the figure’s hand. Nat recognized it as a glow rod they’d gotten from the Republic. She squinted, trying to focus on the face being illuminated by the light. Without her contacts or glasses, it was difficult to see, but she recognized the shape of the face. _“Zitao,”_ she whispered. Her voice was still very limited, but she could at least manage a whisper. _“What are you doing here? Yixing said you didn’t want to be in a hospital.”_

Zitao nodded, his eyes never leaving her face. _“I couldn’t do it in the daytime. With so many people around, and the lights all so harsh. This is better though… a little.”_

_ “How did you get in here, anyway?” _

He smirked, _“How do you think? I know you can sense it, that’s what woke you up. I wanted to talk to you, and I didn’t want to wait for you to get out of here.”_

Nat let out a quiet breath of laughter through her nose. _“You paused Time. Cool. I’d been hoping I’d get to see your powers in action at some point.”_

He laughed quietly in return, nodding. Then his face got serious. _“I need to tell you why it’s so hard for us to be here. It’s hard for the others too, but they have stronger wills. And less happened to them. Well… except for Luhan and Yixing. But Yixing is too much of a healer to let you come here without him, and Luhan is fine as long as Sehun is there.”_

Nat could tell he was stalling. His rambling was getting faster and more blended together. She reached out and grasped his hand. His long fingers easily swallowed up her smaller hand, and a part of her brain melted into feels at the contact. _“Just tell me,”_ she whispered. _“Whatever it is, I won’t turn away.”_ Zitao took a deep breath and nodded. Then… he began.

~~~~~~

“It began five thousand years ago. The Tree of Life that fed our world was under attack. Dark forces wished to take the tree’s powers for themselves. They almost succeeded. But in the darkest moment, when all hope seemed lost, twelve people stepped forth and performed a ritual that split the tree in half. They hoped to at least keep part of the tree safe, allow there to be some hope for the future. What they didn’t expect was that, in splitting the tree, they split the world.

“Each half developed separate from the other. Hangul became a world of desert surrounding a large city. Constantly expanding, never reaching the end. Zhonggu was a world of sophisticated homes and the arts, built atop an ocean both literal and figurative. The people of the under world didn’t enjoy the same privileges as the people in the city. The two peoples were always fighting, the upper world trying to suppress the under.

“Then, the worlds aligned. Twelve descendants of the original twelve heroes received powers. We had no idea it was coming. Suddenly, Yifan, the famous dragon trainer, could fly without riding the animals he trained. Luhan, the singer, could make things float with his mind. Yixing, the doctor in training, could see exactly what was wrong and fix it. Jongdae, the under-city kid who fought his way to the top, could call down a storm of lightning. Minseok, the young prince, would find his room coated in frost. And I, Zitao, the loyal knight, could control Time.

“We found each other simply through our powers. I found Minseok first, and the two of us found Yixing. Then we found Yifan, Luhan and Jongdae. It was only after we found each other, that Jongin found us. He appeared in the room where we’d all met up with an infuriating smirk on his face. ‘I knew I could make it over here,’ he said.

“He began explaining to us what had happened, but I was skeptical. Not entirely of my own volition.” Zitao paused and looked at Nat, pain flashing across his face before he quickly looked away again. “Sung Ah was one of the most beautiful people I’d ever seen. Her name was strange and exotic to my ears, and she had an alluring accent that didn’t hinder her pronunciation at all. She had told me that our worlds had been separated by evil people who wanted to keep all the power to themselves. Myself and my five friends were descendants of those people and it was our responsibility to right the wrongs done by our ancestors.

“After Jongin left to return to Hangul, the others began to discuss amongst themselves. I slipped away to find Sung Ah and ask her about what I’d just heard. I should’ve been able to see it right then. The way her face and voice changed should’ve been enough to make me see what was about to happen. She told me to get the others to meet her in a courtyard nearby, so she could explain things properly. I didn’t question her, though I should’ve.

“We gathered in the courtyard. I used my new powers to rewind and then pause time around us so there would be no civilians in the vicinity. Then, we saw them. Six other people, standing in the same courtyard. I recognized Jongin, but stared incredulously at the others. Who were they? Could they see us too?

“The courtyard went dark, and we looked up. The moon was being covered by a shadow. When I looked back down, not only could I see the others more clearly, indicating that something had changed, but we were all surrounded. We tried to fight, but the transition to this strange middle-ground had thrown off our powers.

“Then we saw her, Sung Ah, held tightly in the restraining arms of some of the men who’d surrounded us. ‘Try anything, and the girl dies.’ We couldn’t go against that! We let them take us, certain we’d find a way to escape.

“They drugged us and dragged us into a van. When we came to, the world was white. The walls, the ceiling, the floor, they’d even taken our own clothes and replaced them with white outfits with black numbers on the collars. We had no way to escape. They kept us drugged, tested our powers over and over, trying to learn their limits, how to break us.

“Yixing still hasn’t recovered from what they put him through, that’s why he can’t do much with his powers without passing out. They kept Baekhyun locked in a tiny, dark room that was designed to absorb light. Yifan was terrified of heights for a while after we arrived because they made him fly until he was exhausted and then watched him fall. They sent the others into a maze and made me manipulate Time inside it so that they were chasing someone they thought was Sung Ah, who was chasing them. Then they trapped us all in an even bigger maze and let us think we’d escaped.

“We don’t know how long they trapped us there, but we eventually managed to escape thanks to Jongin. His powers were the only ones they seemed to have a hard time breaking. He had no jump limit, and he could even jump between split worlds. Eventually, he found us all and we escaped to Hangul.

“We were exhausted and worn down, but we had to stop them. We eventually managed to find the two halves of the Tree in each world. Using all our powers that we had left, we reunited the two halves and made our universe whole again. The bad guys got sucked back into the void where they’d built their lair, unable to return.

“We thought we’d be seen as the heroes who’d saved the world. Turns out reuniting the two realms did not go smoothly. There were many people who resented that we’d just overturned everyone’s lives without thinking of the consequences. So, we got Jongin to use his powers one more time. We left our universe behind and landed in this one. Even Jongin’s powers were depleted by the trip. It took us a while to recharge.

“We found SM, or they found us. We became trainees and the rest is history. We suggested the MV concept when our powers started coming back so that we could pass off any accidental slips as special effects. Chanyeol and Jongdae had the hardest time controlling their powers, constantly ending up with flames or sparks dancing on their fingers or in their hair, but we got through it.

“Now, here you are, with your magnetic personality that so resembles her. And the way you instantly connected with everyone. I wanted to hate you. Wanted to keep my distance and not get attached. But then you helped Baekhyun at the party. You kept everyone safe and made us love you.”

His eyes searched out Nat’s again, and she felt herself falling into their depths. “I don’t know what to do with how I feel,” he whispered.

Nat wanted to give him some big, meaningful speech about how she loved him too and that they could try to make this big, messy thing between them work, but the words wouldn’t come. It was as though all her Chinese vocabulary had flown right out of her head and she could barely remember how to say thank you.

Zitao suddenly stood up, his tall frame towering over her in the near-darkness. _“I must go now. I can’t maintain my powers forever.”_ He looked down at her and his face softened briefly. He reached out and ghosted his fingers over her cheek. They both ignored the slightly escalated beeping of the heart monitor. _“I will come see you when you get out. Perhaps we can talk.”_ He didn’t phrase it as a question, merely stated that it was possible that they could talk and then walked out of the room.

Nat sank back in her pillows, breathing slowly and deeply to try and calm herself down. Eventually, she drifted back to sleep, her dreams full of images made of clips from Exo’s various music videos and stitched together by Zitao’s words. She would have a lot of work to do if she wanted to win her bias’s heart.


	7. The Road

Chapter Six

The Road

 

As soon as the doctors gave her the all clear to leave the hospital, Nat went straight back home and took a long, hot shower. Then she spent about two hours cuddling and playing with her cats who were both very glad to have her back where they could keep an eye on her. Colson called shortly afterward, insisting that she come in and let the SHIELD doctors check her over just to be safe. “Phil, I promise, I’m fine! I just need to relax a bit and finish my arrangements to go to California.”

“You’re not still going!” Phil exclaimed, shocked that she wasn’t going to stay home.

“Of course I am,” she replied calmly. “What did you think, that I’d cancel an opportunity to watch a group of my friends perform in America for the first time? That I’d give up the chance to see them in person on one of the biggest music stages on TV? No way!”

“At least tell me you’re taking some back up.”

“Daniel and Arwen are coming, and I will be surrounded by people the whole time.”

“I didn’t mean your cats!” Nat could hear the frustration in Phil’s voice and she sighed quietly.

“I’ll see if I can get a couple of the Roman Demigods in with me, but I can’t guarantee anything. It’s pretty last minute.”

“Alright, but if there’s even a hint of something going wrong, promise me you’ll get out of there.”

“I promise,” she assured him. “Are you still planning on coming for Thanksgiving?”

“Wouldn’t miss it,” he replied.

~~~~~~~

                The AMAs were amazing. Nat managed to get two seats for her extra guests, and invited Reyna and Piper, who was visiting Jason in New Rome, to join her. Both girls turned up in elegant dresses, and she couldn’t be happier with their presence.

They were lucky enough to get seats with BTS, so Nat introduced the two demigods to the Koreans and everyone hit it off. They got to meet a few other famous people, including artists that Nat was a fan of, so it was quite the fun experience.

Then, it was BTS’s turn to perform. They slipped out of their seats and Nat wished them good luck. She wasn’t nervous, she knew they’d do great. She was very excited though. She knew she wasn’t the only ARMY in the audience, and she loved the song they were going to perform. She fiddled with the smooth material of her tie, trying to keep from spazzing out.

As the group was announced, people began shooting to their feet, screams and cheers rising from the ARMYs in attendance and getting other people psyched up as well. Then the lights went down, and effect lighting lit up blue behind the boys’ silhouettes. They were all wearing the outfits from the DNA music video, even Jimin with his colorful, sequined jacket that shimmered in the light as the song began and the dancing picked up.

It didn’t take long for the whole auditorium to be on their feet dancing to the infectious beat and singing along if possible. Nat, with her perfect Korean, belted out each lyric, even the rap lines from Yoongi and Namjoon. She was in heaven. She could hardly believe that she was here, right now, in person to see this historic moment. She even danced along as best she could, her tie flying around her.

When the song ended, they boys bowed and blew kisses and then exited out the back of the stage. Nat gestured to the demigods and they all slipped out of their seats to go back stage and meet up with the group. By the time they located them, they were already in the dressing rooms, relaxing and congratulating each other on a job well done.

They all cheered when they saw Nat, Taehyung bounding forward to wrap her in a hug. “What did you think?”

“You were all amazing!” she exclaimed, grinning up at him. “I think my heart is about ready to just die of happiness right now. I am so proud of you guys!” She hugged him back eagerly, and laughed when Jimin and Jungkook pulled him away so they could get hugs too.

They all went out to celebrate, and then Nat decided to crash at Camp Jupiter for the night instead of teleporting back home. BTS would be staying in the US for a little longer to go on various TV shows, so Nat was glad that she’d have them within easy reach for a bit longer. Plus, they’d be in the States for Thanksgiving, and she’d already secured a promise from them that they’d join her.

The next few days were spent preparing for Thanksgiving, and fielding calls from Phil about precautions. “Everyone knows your stance on Holidays. They know you’ll be celebrating. You should hold it at Camp or here on base where we can keep an eye on you.”

“Phil, my place is already decorated and set up. Magnus will be over tomorrow to put up some wards, and the Magicians are going to add some of their own. We’ll be plenty safe. Besides, none of the Campers or Magicians are attending. They don’t celebrate it. Not even Exo are coming. It’ll just be me and you and the Avengers and BTS. I don’t see how I could be safer than I will be.”

Nat could hear him sighing and grinned, she knew she’d won. “Fine. I’ll see you soon then.”

“Bye, Phil.” Nat knew Phil meant well. He was just concerned about her. He didn’t want her enjoyment of the holidays to be tainted by another kidnapping. And she appreciated it, but with Daniel and Arwen barely letting her out of their sight, she doubted she was in much danger.

The cats were ridiculously fond of Magnus Bane so, when the warlock showed up the next day to install his layer of wards over the apartment, they finally left Nat’s side in favor of rubbing against his ankles. “What is it about you that turns even hyper intelligent animals into perfectly docile fluff balls?” Nat asked as Magnus entered the apartment.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he said innocently, but then his face softened and he gave her a hug. “I am so glad you’re all right. Clary was worried about you.”

“Clary has enough to worry about without being concerned about me,” Nat deflected. “I heard about what happened with Valentine and Jace.”

Magnus’ face stiffened. “Well, yes. It was a lot. But she’s managing.” He stepped away and headed toward the hidden cabinet where he kept the ingredients he needed to put up wards in this universe. “Why don’t I get started on this, and you make us some drinks? It’ll take a little while for my magic to align with the energy here.”

Nat nodded, taking his avoidance as a hint to stay away from the subject for now. “I know. I have this new tea that the Magicians came up with. Carter said it should cut down on the amount of time it takes for you to adjust to a new universe. I’ll give you the recipe, so you can take it home with you. See if it works for the return trip as well.”

They worked in silence for a little bit, Daniel sticking with Nat, and Arwen following Magnus’ movements with attentive eyes. By the time Nat had finished with the drinks and carefully brought them back to the living room, Magnus had completed the parts of the brew that could be done without magic.

They sat down on the couch with the cats curled up between them. Magnus’ ringed fingers curled elegantly around the handle of the tea cup Nat had given him and he took a delicate sip. “It’s not too bad,” he commented, watching his host carefully over the rim of the cup. Nat nodded and hummed an acknowledgement, but didn’t look up at him. She had her hands wrapped around a mug of hot chocolate and was staring absentmindedly into it. “You haven’t told them yet, have you?”

Nat looked up at him sharply, finally breaking out of her trance. Then she lowered her eyes guiltily and shook her head. “I haven’t really had to yet.”

Magnus sighed and looked at her sympathetically. “You know it’s better to get it over with instead of trying to explain it when it happens.” Nat nodded, but didn’t look back up at him. “What are you afraid of?”

“I’m afraid they won’t accept me,” she said bluntly. “Their country isn’t super accepting of this stuff even though there has been some progress in recent years.”

“Eventually you’re going to have a day where you just can’t keep it from them anymore. When that day comes, you’re going to have to make a choice. I think you should go ahead and tell them. At least that way, you’ll know.”

Nat nodded slowly, “Seems a little cliché, but I guess I could tell them tomorrow. I’ll have back up. And at least then I’ll know.”

Magnus reached out and patted her knee. “I think that’s a wonderful idea.” Arwen stretched up from her position on the couch and rubbed against Magnus’ sleeve. The warlock laughed and stroked the cat’s soft fur. “Yes, my dear. I see you.”

Nat snorted in laughter and sipped carefully at her drink. “Little traitor is such a diva! She’s never that affectionate with me.”

Arwen curled closer to Magnus’ leg, turning her head away from Nat with an almost haughty look on her face. Nat pouted dramatically, and Magnus laughed again. “She’s jealous. She thinks you like Daniel more than her.”

“Aww! Arwen! I love both of you equally!” Nat leaned over and petted Arwen’s fur gently. “You’re my fierce, strong, protector who will chase away anyone who tries to hurt me. Daniel is my cuddly fluff ball who always stays by my side to keep me out of harm’s way. You both protect me in different ways, but I love you both so much!”

The cat finally turned to look at her, and Nat saw the look of pure affection in the feline’s eyes that she usually only saw from Daniel. With a smile, she lifted Arwen into her arms and hugged her tightly, glad that she’d gotten this chance.

Magnus smiled softly and petted Daniel’s fur, so he wouldn’t feel left out. “Well, I certainly didn’t expect to be playing psychologist when I came today.”

Nat laughed and looked up at him, her eyes shining. “I’m sorry, Magnus. You must think I’m terrible.”

“Not at all, Pumpkin. I think you’re very sweet, and I’m just glad we were able to put the time where I had no magic to good use.” He stood and snapped his fingers, blue and gold sparks falling from them. “Shall we?”

Nat set Arwen down and patted her one more time before joining Magnus by the bowl he’d put the ingredients in. He finished the last few steps, which included a hair from Nat, and then said a few words over the bowl. It flared brightly for a moment and then Magnus twirled his hands around, spun and lifted his arms. A shimmering curtain lifted around Nat’s apartment, visible through the huge windows, and then faded away. “There, all set.”

Nat leaned in and gave him a hug. “Thank you, Magnus. For everything.”

“You are most welcome, Pumpkin,” he pulled away and patted her on the shoulders. “Good luck tomorrow. Make sure you let me know how things go.”

“I will.”

~~~~~~~~

                When the Magicians came later that day to finish the warding, they found a giggling pile of human and cat, enjoying a renewal of their relationship on the floor. Arwen was much more affectionate, both to Nat and to Daniel, whom she’d previously treated as a rival.

                With the final preparations ready, Nat sent a mass text, telling everyone who was attending when they could show up. Thanksgiving wasn’t necessarily her favorite holiday, but she did enjoy the food and the company and the tradition. With any luck, her announcement wouldn’t make her lose her newest and closest friends.


	8. XOXO

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this chapter is a lot shorter than most, but I didn't want to stuff too much into this one. Also the next one is going to be hard to write let alone read, so I figured I'd get this out of the way before that. Hope I don't scare anyone away. Enjoy!

Chapter Seven

XOXO

 

                Taehyung knew something was different when he entered Nat’s apartment on Thursday. Besides the obvious differences in decorations, there was a tenseness in the atmosphere that he couldn’t quite pinpoint. He couldn’t focus on it immediately, because there were several new people whom Nat was introducing them to. Tony Stark was a lot to take in all at once, so it wasn’t surprising that it took all of BTS several moments to focus back on their host.

                It wasn’t unusual to see Nat in a suit. Baekhyun had told him that their first encounter had been with Nat wearing a very festive outfit that would’ve only needed a jacket to be considered a full suit. And he’d seen on numerous occasions himself, including at the AMAs, that Nat could totally rock a nice tie and button-down shirt. And yet something was different today. Nat’s outfit was, as in that first meeting with Exo, very festive and appropriate. The shirt was a dark, forest green, and the tie was black with little pies on it. Nat was also wearing black slacks and shiny shoes.

                “괜찮아” Namjoon asked gently. Clearly Taehyung wasn’t the only one who’d noticed something was up.

                Nat took a deep breath and then spoke, “I know this isn’t exactly the easiest thing to process, but I need you to please hear me out before you say anything.” They all nodded, and Nat continued. “I’m genderfluid. Sometimes my brain agrees with my body and says I’m a girl. Sometimes it says I’m actually a boy. A lot of the time, it can’t decide so I’m somewhere in-between. I typically dress depending on how I’m feeling at the time. At the moment,” a hand gestured at the tie and shirt, “I’m a boy. I prefer the name Nate, and would prefer to be referred to as a boy. If you can’t accept that, I understand. And if you can’t…” the voice faltered, unable to continue.

                The tall, vaguely intimidating form of SHIELD agent Mackenzie stepped forward and draped an arm around Nat- Nate’s shoulders. “If you can’t accept it, then you should go ahead and leave.” Nate’s mouth opened to protest, but closed without saying anything.

                Taehyung thought back to all his interactions with Nat over the last few weeks. This explained a few things. More than once he’d heard Nat’s usually flawless Korean falter when addressing himself or one of the older members. As though she- they? he? wanted to say something else, but forced herself- himself? to use Oppa.

                Everyone was quiet for a tense thirty seconds. Then, Jungkook stepped forward slowly. He was the only one younger than Nate. Mack’s stance stiffened, and Jungkook hesitated only a moment before continuing. When he was standing only a foot away from Nate, he lowered his stance, trying to appear as unintimidating as possible. “It’s okay,” he said quietly. Nate looked up, his eyes hopeful. “It’s okay,” he repeated, “Hyung.” Nate’s face split into a bright smile all while tears began pouring down his cheeks.

                Junkook gathered the shorter boy into his arms, cuddling him like he would any of his other Hyungs. Taehyung quickly scrambled forward to join the cuddle, as did Jimin and Hoseok. The other three followed more slowly, but they soon added their forms to the massive hug.

                The other SHIELD agents and Avengers looked on silently for a while. Eventually, Nate reemerged from the huddle, sniffling and wiping at his eyes. Phil approached and held out a tissue. Nate took it gratefully, and Taehyung draped an arm around his shoulders.

                “Well! Now that that’s out of the way,” Tony’s voice was a welcome interruption to the tense atmosphere, “let’s eat!” Everyone laughed, and the noise level rose as everyone got settled in seats at the table.

                Nate asked Namjoon to say the blessing, and then they all dug in. The turkey was delicious, the stuffing was fluffy, the sweet potatoes had the perfect amount of cinnamon. There was corn, green beans, steamed broccoli and carrots, and even a few Korean dishes that Nate knew that names of, but almost no one else at the table could pronounce. The desserts were equally diverse: pumpkin pie, pecan pie, apple pie, a kind of strudel, and a few different types of buns. Nate’s favorites were the pumpkin pie and the buns with red bean paste in the middle.

                Taehyung and Jungkook in particular went out of their way to make sure that Nate understood that everything was okay. They didn’t treat him much different than they did when he was a girl, joking and teasing and making the most noise at the table.

                The other BTS members mostly visited with the Avengers and SHEILD agents, but Jungkook noticed Yoongi sending Nate odd looks. Eventually, the meal ended. Everyone was stuffed with the delicious food and deserts, and were starting to gather their things and leave. Everyone was glad that there hadn’t been any attacks, and even Phil relaxed enough to leave Nate with just BTS and his cats for protection.

                With everyone else gone, quiet descended on the apartment. Nate wasn’t sure what to do now. He silently began clearing the table, and it didn’t take long for the others to join him. They worked silently for a good five minutes before there was a loud crash. Nate jumped and looked up to see a sheepish look on Namjoon’s face, “I’m sorry, it slipped! I’ll clean it up.” He crouched down to pick up the pieces of the broken plate, but Nate rushed over to him, protesting quickly.

                “Ya! Don’t do that, you’ll hurt yourself! I have a broom, just give me a second.” He pushed Namjoon gently away from the sharp ceramic, and hurried to grab the broom and dust pan from a nearby closet. As he quickly swept up the mess, he waved Namjoon away. “Why don’t you take Taehyung and Jungkook into the living room and pick out something to watch? Jungkook, keep him away from my collectables and everything should be fine.” There was a ripple of laughter through the group and the tension dissipated.

                ”Ok!” Jungkook replied, and tugged Namjoon into the living room area.

                Jin took the dustpan from Nate’s hands and shooed him toward the table. “Help the others finish the table, I’ll take care of this.”

                “Yes, Hyung,” Nate replied, his heart jumping slightly in happiness at the ability to use that particular word.

                It didn’t take long for the five of them to finish clearing the table and dumping everything into the replicator to be recycled. By the time they were finished, the other three had picked out a movie they wanted to watch. They all settled onto the couch and laid all over each other in their typical fashion. Nate was snuggled up to Jimin’s side when Jungkook’s head dropped into his lap. He absently carded his fingers through the soft hair as the movie played. His hopes for acceptance by Exo were now high, but would Zitao be alright with dating someone like him? He pushed his concerns away for the moment and simply focused on enjoying the feeling of acceptance permeating the air.


	9. Chill

Chapter Eight

Chill

 

                With Thanksgiving over, Nat threw herself whole-heartedly into Christmas. Decorations went up in the apartment, gifts were bought, songs were sung, and tv shows and movies were watched. The Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movies and Mysteries became her best friends. So much so that Arwen actually changed the channel a couple times when the same movies came on to frequently.

                After coming out to BTS, Nat hadn’t actually gotten around to coming out to Exo. She wasn’t sure how to go about it. Instead, she simply drowned herself in preparations and tried to ignore the conundrum. She couldn’t say why she was hesitating so much… actually, that wasn’t true. She knew exactly why she didn’t want to tell them. That reason was, of course, that Zitao was seeming to be warming up to her. Would that all go away when he found out what she was?

                Silver Bells was playing on the TV, and Nat was wrapping presents when there was a knock on the door. Daniel meowed, and Arwen scampered to the door, leaping up on the cat tree by the door so she could peer through the peep hole. Nat stood and headed to the door as well, waiting for Arwen’s all-clear before opening it.

                She stared in surprise. _“Zitao! What are you doing here?”_

                _“We need to talk,”_ he said quietly. _“May I come in?”_ He was already moving before she responded, so Nat simply stepped out of the way. Zitao was wearing jeans and a long sleeved, white shirt. Nothing fancy, but it felt a bit intimidating. Although, perhaps that was more due to the intense look on his already intense face.

                _“What’s wrong?”_ Nat asked, her voice trembling slightly with nerves. None of the boys ever simply stopped by on their own. It was always with at least one other person, simply because as soon as one said they were going for a visit, several others begged to join. So, what was Zitao doing here on his own?

                _“When were you going to tell me?”_ His voice was low, and he hadn’t turned back around yet, so Nat couldn’t see his face. _“How long did you think you could keep this a secret?”_

                Nat swallowed hard. She’d never been afraid of Zitao before, despite how potentially strong his powers were. _“I don’t-,”_ he didn’t let her finish.

                _“Don’t say you don’t know what I’m talking about. It would be insulting.”_ He finally turned around and Nat took a step back when she saw the look in his eyes. He looked angry, hurt, betrayed. Deep in the center of his pupils, she thought she could see a spot of golden light blazing in the blackness.

Her eyes glanced over his body. His muscles were tense beneath his shirt, and his posture indicated that he was holding himself back. Nat took a deep breath, _“How did you find out?”_

 _“Taehyung isn’t very good at keeping secrets,”_ he growled. _“But I would’ve figured it out eventually. I can see it. In your aura. Yixing figured it out first. He can see more of your aura than I can, but I could still tell that something was different. When Taehyung let it slip, I knew for sure.”_

Nat sighed. She should’ve known Tae wouldn’t be able to hold it in. If she were perfectly honest with herself, she would have to admit that the fact that Exo now knew about her was a relief. It was also a relief that she hadn’t actually had to tell them. _“I didn’t keep it from you on purpose. Not really. I’ve gotten used to ignoring it with new people until I can know for certain how they’ll react. There are some groups that we deal with in the Cooperation that have a difficult time with it. The Wizards, for example, are very outdated in much of their thinking. It took me a while to be certain that it was alright to reveal to them that I was genderfluid so that it wouldn’t damage our relationship with them.”_

Zitao took a deep breath and turned away again, but only for a second. _“You thought I wouldn’t be able to accept you? That any of us would reject you for being who you are?”_ He was in front of her in two quick strides. He cupped her face in his hands, tilting it so that she had to look up at him. _“You are one of the most important things that has happened to us in a very long time, Ning Tian.”_

Nat blinked in surprise at the name. She hadn’t heard anything about being given a Chinese name by the Exo members, but she liked the sound of it. She wanted to say something. Anything. But her vocal chords seemed to have frozen.

Zitao’s eyes traced something around her face. He lifted one hand and combed it through the air. Nat shivered. It was like something was fluttering through her mind. Almost as though she was communicating with her telepath friends from the SGC. _“Do you know how easy it would be to kill you right now? I can touch your timeline. I could age you until you were too old. Or take you back to when you were a baby. You’re so fragile.”_ His eyes focused back on hers again. _“When you were taken, I was so scared. I barely knew you, but I could see that we were intertwined from the beginning. I wanted nothing more than to grab you down from that ledge the second I saw you. You looked so frail. I couldn’t let them take another person I loved from me.”_

Nat’s eyes widened. Love? Had she heard him right? His words seemed to have run out. Before she could formulate any of her own, he leaned down and pressed his lips against hers. Her mind went blank. Sparks flashed in her mind, her nerves lighting up as her perceptions narrowed down to just Zitao’s warm lips on her own and his hands around her face.

Time seemed to slow down. Maybe it did. All Nat was aware of was Zitao, and how it felt to kiss him. Her brain was all fuzzy. She could vaguely hear one of the cats making noise, but she didn’t care. She never wanted this moment to end. Then, it did. In the worst way possible.

~~~~~~

Knowing that Nat’s pets were hyper intelligent, for animals, was very different from seeing it in action. Yoongi and Namjoon arrived at Nat’s apartment after an odd text to find that the door was already open. This set off multiple alarm bells. Then, once they got inside and saw only Daniel and Arwen pacing the floor anxiously, their uneasiness turned into fear. “Where is she?” Yoongi asked the cats.

Arwen immediately scampered off and leapt up to a ledge on the wall. She pressed her paw against the wall and a panel slid open. A couple more taps of the cat’s paw, and a video came up on the screen. They watched in stunned silence as Zitao came in, talked to and then kissed Nat. When she went limp in his arms, he looked up at the camera and grinned evilly. He hoisted her over his shoulder and left quickly.

“I’m going to kill him.” Yoongi’s voice was low and dangerous. “I don’t care about his powers. I’m going to kill him.”

“Hyung, calm down. We have to confirm. There must be something going on. We can’t just-,”

“NO! They took her! They made her trust them, and now they’ve betrayed her and are turning her over to the enemy. I won’t let them get away with it!” He turned and was about to leave when Daniel got in his way, hissing. “Get out of my way!” The cat made a lunge at him, and Yoongi stepped back, startled. Daniel continued to lunge at Yoongi until the boy was backed into the living room again. The cat then joined Arwen on the ledge, and the female cat tapped her paw on the display again. Two graphs came up next to each other, one labeled with Zitao’s name in Chinese characters. The other was labeled as ‘Unknown.’

“What is this?” Yoongi asked.

Namjoon stepped forward to examine the display himself. He pointed to Zitao’s graph. “I think this is showing Zitao’s life sign readings. The other…” He glanced at the two cats. “I think the other is of the guy who was in here.” They shared a significant look, and Yoongi stepped closer to the display.

“They look different. Zitao’s outputs are lower than the other guy. So…”

“Whoever took Nat wanted us to think it was Zitao. They just didn’t count on the sophistication of the equipment here.” Namjoon reached out and petted Arwen’s head. “고마워, 키티,” he said gently, and turned toward the door. “Come on, Hyung. We need to get help.”

~~~~~

Meanwhile, Nat woke on the floor of a cage. She scrambled to her feet, and almost immediately grabbed the bars while she regained her balance. Her head was spinning, and something about the environment felt weird. “Hello?” she called, her voice shaky. She instantly regretted it. The sound bounced around, warped and stretched like a fun house mirror of sound. She clutched her head, closing her eyes and willing it to stop.

Finally, it did, and she removed her hands, looking around slowly and trying to make as little noise as possible. She had no idea what was going on. She sat back down and tried to remember what had happened. A gasp escaped her lips as she remembered the kiss. It had felt so amazing. Everything she’d ever dreamed of. Then everything had gone all fuzzy and warped. Kind of like it was now.

Reflexively, Nat reached up toward her neck to grip the necklace she always wore. Before she met the boys, she’d cycled through twelve necklaces with each of their power symbols on them plus one that was for BTS, and one that said ‘strength’ in Chinese. Since meeting them, she’d tried to keep those for days when she knew she wouldn’t be seeing them and had, instead, worn ones for other fandoms. Since she hadn’t been expecting company though, she’d been wearing Jongdae’s scorpion symbol. It was gone now. Whoever brought her here must have taken it.

She sighed and slumped back against the bars, running her fingers through her short hair. She just had to stay calm. No matter what, her friends would find a way to locate her. They’d get her back. She just had to hang on a little longer.

Without warning, the air suddenly cleared. Everything went back to normal, and Nat looked up to see someone coming down the stairs. She scrambled to her feet, determined to face this threat head on.

He was an older man, though by how much, she couldn’t be sure. He stopped at the door to her cage and regarded her for a moment before smiling. “You look nothing like how I pictured you.” Nat blinked, slightly shocked that he was speaking English with only the slightest of Korean accents. “I thought you’d have to be a goddess to get their attention so quickly. Especially numbers 68 and 00. I thought for sure they would have learned their lesson about beautiful women.”

“Good thing I’m not a woman then,” Nate replied. Sometimes, he really loved being genderfluid. Whether this was kicking in as a response to the stress or what, he couldn’t help feeling grateful for the rush of confidence that being male in this moment gave to him.

The man smiled thinly but didn’t comment. “Do you know who I am?”

“No.”

“I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised they haven’t mentioned me. We didn’t exactly part under the best of circumstances.” He straightened even more, which Nate hadn’t realized was possible. “I am Kim Yeong Shil. The one who brought all of them together.”

Nate frowned in confusion. “I don’t’ understand. Zitao said they found each other after their powers showed up.”

He laughed. “Yes, I suppose that would be an accurate way to describe it. They found each other in their own worlds. And then… I brought the two halves together. For there would be no unified world without all of Exo. And no Exo without a unified world.”

Nate’s eyes widened in shock. “You mean… Are you saying that you ran the facility that tortured and experimented on them and their powers?”

He laughed again, long and loud. “Of course, we experimented on them! We had to make sure we would be able to replicate their powers with accuracy.”

Nate’s expression froze. “Replicate?” Suddenly, the strange woozy feelings from before made perfect sense. “You copied- no. You **stole** their powers! That’s why Yixing can’t do as much as he used to be able to. Why Yifan can only fly so far, why Zitao can only maintain for so long, why Baekhyun is afraid of the dark!  You stole their powers!” Nate’s anger flared bright and hot in his chest, burning like Chanyeol’s flames and spreading through out his body. He rushed toward the bars, intending to reach through and grab onto the sick, twisted man who’d dared to hurt Exo.

He didn’t even make it to the bars. Suddenly, he somewhere entirely different. The walls were impossibly high, made of stone. It looked like it was all one, long corridor, but Nate recognized it immediately. The maze where Exo had been trapped. Chasing each other. Chasing a phantom that didn’t exist. Nate reached out and splayed one hand against the dark grey stones of the walls. _“Zitao, please. Hurry. Find me… Please.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Korean translation: Thank you, kitty.


	10. Overdose

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, Everyone! Sorry it took me so long to post this chapter. I can blame nothing but my own lazy procrastination. I also apologize for the shortness of the chapter. I had wanted to include more, but decided it would be better to put that in the next chapter so I could get this one posted and not procrastinate more. I hope you enjoy!

Chapter Nine

Overdose

 

Yoongi wanted someone to hit. Someone to blame. But the only place for him to direct his anger was toward an unknown person who wasn’t within his reach to hurt. So, he had chosen SHIELD to take the brunt of his fury. Nat had been missing for four hours, and they had yet to find a lead. He was busy berating Phil Coulson when Exo finally showed up. “And where have you been? This is your fault! Whoever took her used YOU to get to her!”

Zitao’s hard expression twisted into one of rage. _“You have no room to talk! Don’t come to us, complaining that we put her in danger. You are the ones she is in danger around. You can’t protect her!”_

“Stop it!” Phil shouted, cutting in before things could get any worse. “The last thing we need right now is fighting amongst ourselves. We need to pool our resources and find her.”

Namjoon stepped up, placing a hand on Yoongi’s shoulder. “Of course. What can we do to help?”

“You,” Phil replied, pointing at BTS, “can stay out of the way and not get captured.” He turned to Exo. “We will need you guys to coordinate with the Doctor. I’m sure he’ll be able to find her with his sensors.”

He turned away, clearly thinking that was the end of it. “You think we just stay back?” Taehyung’s deep voice sounded strange speaking English, but his tone was clear.

Phil tried to defend himself, but Namjoon cut in before he could. “Just because you think you know all your assets, doesn’t mean that you do, Agent Coleson.”

Phil frowned in confusion, his eyes flicking over the group. Jungkook had stepped closer to Taehyung, standing just behind the other boy’s shoulder with an intense look on his face. Jin had done a similar thing with Namjoon, placing a hand on the taller man’s shoulder and fixing Phil with a look that he couldn’t quite interpret. “You all have powers.”

He didn’t phrase it a question, but Namjoon answered him anyway. “Yes. In a way.”

The room went completely silent. The Exo members stared at BTS incredulously. They had all been friends for years. How had they never known that the smaller group had powers? “What are your powers?” Yifan asked, his deep voice quiet.

“I have super strength,” Namjoon answered. He shifted to place a hand on Jin’s shoulder, “Jin is a Demigod. Son of Aphrodite.” He gestured to Taehyung next, “Taehyung used to have wings.”

Jimin stepped forward on his own. “I see in infrared.”

“I am a Demigod as well,” Yoongi said. “Norse though. Son of Bragi. God of Eloquence and Poetry.”

“Me too,” Hoseok chimed in. “Son of Apollo.”

“I can pick things up really quickly,” Jungkook said quietly. “But we’re not sure if that’s a power, or I’m just that good.” Taehyung elbowed him lightly.

 _“Why did you never tell us?”_ Zitao’s voice was quiet.

“We thought you had enough on your plate as it is,” Namjoon’s voice was quiet as well.

Suho took a step forward. “I think we all have underestimated each other. We should discuss a better alliance.”

“Later,” Yifan cut in. “We should contact the Doctor-,” he was cut off by the sound of the TARDIS, scraping its way into existence. Zitao winced, but he didn’t have as much trouble as the first time he’d encountered the ship.

The Doctor stepped out with an almost murderous expression on his face. “What have you done, Coleson?”

“Doctor-,”

“No! You don’t get to speak this time. I’ll deal with you later.” He turned to the boys, “Come on, let’s-,” he stopped, his eyes fixed on Taehyung. “What are you doing here?”

Taehyung blinked at him, a confused look on his face. “What are you talking about?”

“You shouldn’t be on this planet,” The Doctor said. “How did you get here? And where did you get your perception filter? I can’t even detect it.” He yanked out his sonic screwdriver and buzzed it over Taehyung before the boy could protest.

“What is going on here?” Namjoon asked. He wrapped an arm around Taehyung’s shoulders, his expression serious.

“No perception filter,” The Doctor said without replying. “How are you hiding them?” He stopped suddenly, looking back at Taehyung with wide, horrified eyes. “No.” The look suddenly softened to one of pity. “You had them removed. You poor thing. I’m so sorry. If I’d found you earlier…”

“What’s going on, Doc?” It was Yifan’s voice that brought the Doctor back to the present.

“He’s a member of a species called the Chun’ewua. They’re known for their expansive wings that they use to ride the strong winds on their home planet. They rarely travel, and never this far from their home. At least, not at this point in time. How did you even get here?”

“Talk later!” Zitao’s English was even more heavily accented that Taehyung’s had been. “We are wasting time!”

“Right!” The Doctor was suddenly all business again. “Let’s get going! With any luck, we’ll still be able to track her signature.” He bounded back inside the TARDIS, and the boys followed, shutting the door in Phil’s face yet again.

Namjoon told the Doctor about the signature that the cats had shown him and Yoongi. “Can you use that to track the guy?”

“Absolutely! We’ll just have to go get it from the computer…”

“No,” Yoongi held out a chip he’d been keeping in his pocket. “I got the data before we left.”

The Doctor grinned and, before anyone could protest, grasped Yoongi’s face and kissed his head firmly. The rapper stood in absolute shock for about thirty seconds while the Doctor began dancing around the control panel, inputting the data.

Taehyung gripped his shoulder, grinning goofily. “He kissed you!” He laughed, his smile wide and boxy as he took in Yoongi’s stunned expression.

Yoongi finally blinked and batted the other boy away, “What’s the verdict?” he called, hoping the Doctor had some news.

“It’ll be a little rough, but I’ve locked onto the signature. We should be able to get there. Hold onto something!” His grin became almost manic as he danced around the console. The nineteen boys quickly grabbed onto the railing where they could. Anyone who couldn’t, held onto the supports, or their fellow members as the TARDIS began shaking and bouncing around even more than before.

It seemed to go on forever. Finally, there was a loud thud, and most of them were shaken loose from their holds as they landed with a jolt. The Doctor leapt lightly over anyone in his way as he darted toward the door. He pointed the Sonic back at the console and there were a couple beeps. “Let’s go,” he said, his voice serious.

They all followed him out the door, shutting it behind them. The Doctor and BTS looked around themselves at the grey walls and sandy floor, wondering where they could possibly be. Yoongi was about to ask, but then he caught sight of the expressions on Exo’s collective faces. “What’s wrong?” He asked.

“We know who took Nat,” Yifan’s voice was low, as though he was trying not to give away any emotions.

“The same people we fought when we left our world,” Suho added in the same grim tone.

 _ “The Red Eye,”_ Zitao finished. They were in the same labyrinth they’d had to escape before. This time, it wasn’t just a set made of green screens and flimsy walls. It was real. And it was the scariest thing any of them had ever seen.


	11. MAMA

Chapter Ten

Mama

 

                Nate felt like he’d been wandering for hours. He probably had. His mouth was dry, and his legs were beginning to feel like jelly. He’d been trying to find the center of the maze since he’d landed there. So far, he hadn’t had any luck. For the first hour, he’d silently berated himself for not committing every curve and angle of the Overdose emblem to memory. He would’ve found the way ages ago. Then he started singing to himself, driving away the oppressive silence. It didn’t take long for the music to turn into daydreams and the dreams into nightmares.

                When he’d come back to his senses, he was sitting on the dirt floor of the maze, leaning against the wall. With a groan, he tried to push himself up, only to discover that his legs had gone weak. “Okay, Nate,” he told himself. “Deep breaths. Just breathe. You’ll be fine.” For a few minutes, he simply sat still, breathing and hoping he’d be able to get up at all.

                Suddenly, he heard, very distinctly, a familiar sound. The raspy, wheezing sound of the TARDIS materializing. He scrambled to his feet, leaning against the wall for support as he began stumbling in the direction of the sound. He could hear voices now, Chinese and Korean being spoken quietly. A louder voice speaking English with a British accent. He turned a corner and saw them.

                A smile spread across his face. He tried to shout, but his throat had gone too dry. He was almost to them when he suddenly hit something solid and fell back. It took him a couple moments to gather the energy to stand up again but, when he did, he approached the spot slower. His fingers met a smooth, impenetrable force. He could see through it. See the Doctor speaking with BTS and Exo. They were all there. He could even see Donna, hovering around the Doctor’s shoulder, being quiet for once. He banged his fist against the wall and ripples scattered out from his strike point. They didn’t even look up. Didn’t even turn.

                _“Zitao! Yifan! I’m here!”_ he shouted. He tried to concentrate, but panic was beginning to cloud his mind and close his throat.  “Namjoon-hyung! Yoongi-hyung! I’m here! Please!” Nothing. Not even a twitch in his direction. He pounded against the wall again, tears beginning to pour down his cheeks. _“Please.”_ The word was merely a whisper, but he shouted it in his mind, silently begging someone, anyone, to hear him.

                A golden glow enveloped his mind. For a single moment, he was sure that the TARDIS had heard him! Then, everything went white.

~~~~~~~

                The silence was deafening. No one said a word for what felt like a solid minute. Jimin scanned the walls and what he saw scared him. Most of the signatures were old, faded. But some were still distinctive to his vision. So much had happened here. So much pain.

                He blinked when he saw a distinctive outline on one wall. He was about to say something when the TARDIS suddenly made a loud noise that made everyone jump. The Doctor whipped out a pair of specs, and shoved them on his face, scanning the area as well. When Jimin looked at him, he saw that he was looking at the exact spot where Jimin had seen the outline.

                “Nate is here!” The Doctor shouted, rushing to the wall.

                “He was,” Jimin clarified. “He’s gone now.”

                The Doctor turned to look at him in shock. “How can you tell that?”

                Jimin gestured to his eyes. “I see in infrared.” He glanced over at Exo. “I can see what happened here. I’m sorry.”

                _“We won’t be here long.”_ Luhan’s voice was strong. So strong, that they all turned to stare at him. _“We’re going to get Nate back and then we’re going to get out of here and leave it behind forever.”_

                “WELL, WELL. BOLD WORDS FROM SOMEONE WHO I LAST SAW CRYING AND BEGGING FOR US TO STOP.”

                The entire group of twelve froze. An image flickered to life not far from them. The man was of average height. His greying hair was short and smoothed back in a professional style. His suit was sharp, yet simple. He seemed completely ordinary and unthreatening. Yet the entire group of powerful boys flinched violently away from him.

                BTS moved forward almost without thinking, the smaller group arranging themselves protectively in front of the larger one. The man chuckled. “WHAT DO WE HAVE HERE?”

Jimin sidled up to Namjoon. “He’s not here. I can’t see him.”

The Doctor appeared next to him, whipping on his specs again. “You’ve got that exactly right, my interesting friend! Quite the hologram you’ve got there, Sir.”

“AREN’T YOU AN INTERESTING ONE AS WELL. I SEE OUR LITTLE FRIEND HAS SOME FRIENDS OF HER OWN.”

“I think it’s about time you let Nate go, don’t you?” The Doctor said calmly.

The man chuckled, the sound rolling through the air and causing another flinch from Exo. “I THINK I’LL BE KEEPING MY NEW SUBJECT FOR A WHILE LONGER.” He stepped to the side and the hologram expanded backward to reveal a shiny metal table with a figure in white lying on it.

“아뇨!”

“沒有!”

The outcry of fear and denial was loud enough to echo off the walls. Baekhyun and Zitao rushed forward and were held back by BTS. “Let him go!” Baekhyun’s voice was full of tears.

“AH, NUMBER FOUR. I DID SO ENJOY OUR TIME TOGETHER. PERHAPS I SHOULD START WITH WHAT YOU TAUGHT US.” He turned toward the bed and nodded. Two women in white dresses with red visors stepped into the image and began pushing buttons and moving around Nate’s body.

The Doctor was broken out of his trance when Minseok grabbed his arm. “We have to do something! Now! If they finish what they’re doing…”

The Doctor snapped into motion. “Come on everyone! Back in the TARDIS, now!”

Baekhyun was still screaming as they pulled him away. “We can’t just leave him!” he screamed as they dragged him inside and shut the door.

“We’re not, Baekhyun,” the Doctor said quickly, dancing around the console. “We’re going to get him back. I promise.”

Jimin couldn’t help staring at the center column as it moved. He was fascinated by how the energy looked to his vision. He could see how it moved through the entire ship, concentrating in the column, and then spreading through not just the ship, but the people inside as well.

When the ship landed, they all moved toward the door as a united front. “Stay here,” the Doctor told Donna before she could join them. She tried to protest, but Jongdae stepped up.

“Please. Stay.” There was no further argument.

When the door opened, the two idol groups plus the Doctor moved swiftly through the door. Yifan leapt straight into the air, ready to attack from above. Jongdae and Chanyeol were flickering with lightning and fire respectively. Jongin grabbed Namjoon’s shoulder and the two of them teleported across the room to where Nate was just beginning to convulse under the women’s hands.

Guards began pouring into the room and a battle began. “Eyes!” Baekhyun’s shout came just before a brilliant flash of light filled the room, blinding everyone who hadn’t shut their eyes. Namjoon ripped the restraints off Nate’s body and lifted the smaller boy into his arms. Jongin teleported them back to the TARDIS and they scrambled inside.

Meanwhile, the rest of Exo and BTS battled the guards, pushing them back and keeping them away from the rescue party. The Doctor focused on Kim Yeong Shil. “I think it’s about time you paid for your crimes, Sir.”

Yeong Shil laughed. “You have no idea what I have done. No idea why I have worked so hard for so long to crate what I’ve created here!”

“I don’t particularly care,” the Doctor responded, his face a cold mask. “You kidnapped Nate. Put him through hell. Tried to experiment on him! You put Exo through hell as well! If there was every someone deserving of punishment, it is you.”

“And how do you intend to make me pay, hmm? You have no weapons besides the boys you say you care so much about. It took all their powers combined to close this dimension the first time. What do you expect to do?”

The Doctor smiled. “You think you’re so clever with your devices and the way you’ve ripped apart the universe to create this little pocket. But my people invented this science. You are no match.” He lifted the Sonic Screwdriver and pointed it at one of the nearby machines. Yeong Shil’s face went rigid. “Back to the TARDIS!” The Doctor shouted, and then pressed the button on the screwdriver.

The machine exploded in a shower of sparks, and the room began to rumble, the ceiling collapsing slowly. They barely made it back to the TARDIS before everything crashed down on top of them. The Doctor danced frantically around the console, sending the ship riding the shockwave of the collapsing pocket universe back into the regular one.

They set down with a thump, and then they all rushed to the infirmary to check on Nate. He was lying so still. The monitors that had automatically begun showing results showed that his heart rate was extremely slow. Too slow. And something else was off. The room was dim, but Nate’s body glowed faintly. “They’d already started,” Baekhyun’s voice was quiet as he spoke into the silence. He turned to Yixing before anyone could stop him. “Can you do something?”

Minseok opened his mouth to protest, but Yixing was already moving toward Nate’s body. He closed his eyes, preparing but, before he could do anything, there was a knock on the TARDIS door. Frowning in confusion, the Doctor gave Yixing a warning look and hurried to see who it was.

“What an unexpected surprise!” Magnus Bane’s voice was cheerful and interested as the door opened. “To what do I owe-,” but the Doctor was already pulling him inside and down the hallway.

“Come, quickly. See what you can do.”

When Magnus saw Nate’s condition, his expression melted into one of worry and concentration. “Tell me what happened.”

Yifan did so, while Magnus scanned Nate’s body. “I need to get him out of here and into my house. I’ll be able to treat him better there.”

Without a word, Namjoon lifted Nate into his arms and followed the Warlock out of the TARDIS and into his house. Alec Lightwood entered from another room and immediately went into serious mode. “How is he? Can I do anything to help?”

“Stay nearby,” Magnus said as he directed Namjoon to lay Nate on a table. “I may need your strength.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprise! Cliff-hanger again!
> 
> We're getting really close to the end here! I wanna thank everyone who has read this so far, and remind you that I would appreciate some reviews if you liked it. Thanks!


	12. The Star

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I DID IT! I FINISHED THE STORY! The next chapter is the epilogue, and then that's it! Thank you to everyone who reviewed and read this. I love this story so much, and I feel so proud that it's finally over and in a satisfactory form at last. I hope you all enjoyed it!

Chapter Eleven

The Star

 

When Christmas Eve dawned, Nat woke with a smile on her face. It was the first morning in weeks that she’d woken up without feeling the ache in her body that had been plaguing her since her capture. Magnus had been able to almost completely reverse the rudimentary grafting of Baekhyun’s powers that had been started. Yixing ended up having to help, but it was just minor enough, that the consequences had been minimal.

Phil had been unbearably clingy for about two weeks before Yixing had convinced him that Nat would be able to recover much better at home than in the infirmary of the Avengers’ compound. Now, it was finally time to set aside all the unpleasantness and just enjoy the holiday.

Nat started up a looping playlist of all the Exo winter albums they’d released. The music accompanied her throughout her morning as she ate breakfast, got dressed and finished wrapping the presents she needed to put under the tree. The two idol groups would be coming to spend the next day and a half with her leading up to the Christmas party on the evening of the big day.

Once all the presents were wrapped and tucked under the tree, Nat began cueing up the recipes she planned to use in the replicator. That way they didn’t have to go searching for them when they all got hungry. She’d just finished when she heard a knock at the door. She checked the monitors to be sure that it was who it was supposed to be, and then opened the door.

She was almost knocked off her feet by Taehyung who tackled her in a hug the instant he was through the door. “Merry Christmas!”

“Merry Christmas, Oppa!” She replied, laughing as she stumbled and caught herself on the wall.

“Yah! No hogging!” Baekhyun’s voice was a little whiney as he tugged Taehyung off and claimed his own hug.

Eventually, everyone was inside and had set down their things in the guest room on the first floor. The normally empty apartment was quickly filled with sound as everyone chatted and laughed as they made themselves comfortable. Eventually, they all ended up in the living room, lounging on the couches and chairs and dragging in bean bags and pillows and comforters from other rooms. The room basically turned into a giant nest with people lounging in different areas as attention slowly turned to the tv which was playing the first Santa Clause movie.

 _“So, is that how it really works?”_ Yixing asked as the sleigh descended into the stables.

Nat laughed lightly, slightly dislodging Yoongi who had claimed her shoulder as his pillow. He grumbled softly and shifted forward, so he was lying on her lap and then went still again. _“No. Santa is real, of course, but it doesn’t work like that.”_

Chanyeol asked what was said and Nat translated. “Santa isn’t real!” he protested. “There’s no way that Santa is real!”

Nat rolled her eyes. “Yeah. Sure. Tell me that again in the morning when you wake up to even more presents under the tree.” She gestured at the giant pine that stood in the only cushion-free section of floor in the room. There were a decent number of presents under there, but there was clearly room for more.

“How would he even get in here? There’s a fireplace, but there’s no actual chimney for him to come down.”

Nat pushed herself up off Namjoon’s shoulder to glare at Chanyeol. “I am not going to get into a debate with you right now about how magic works. Just wait until tomorrow morning. You’ll see.” Chanyeol huffed, but didn’t say anything else, simply slouching back into his chair and combing his fingers through Jongin’s hair where the teleporter was leaning against his leg.

By the time the movie was over everyone was getting hungry, so Nat ordered a couple of pizzas from the replicator and distributed them with sodas and other drinks. “This is amazing!” Kyungsoo exclaimed. “Where did you get this recipe?”

Nat grinned. “The Doctor and I stayed in Italy for a couple weeks once. I got the recipe from a lady there. She had no family to pass it on to, and I promised her that I would keep it safe forever.”

Her smile turned a little sad, and Taehyung reached out to pat her knee. “It’s the best pizza I’ve ever had!” Everyone burst out in cheers and agreements, and the festive atmosphere was restored.

Eventually, the sun set, and people began to drift off one by one. Nat suggested that they all get in their pajamas before the boys fell asleep in their jeans. She went upstairs for a moment and returned just in time to catch a glimpse of Zitao pulling his shirt down over his stomach. She glanced away quickly, hoping she wasn’t blushing. No such luck.

“Aww! Does Noona like seeing Hyung with no shirt?” Jungkook’s voice was low and teasing.

Nat smoothed her expression and gestured for him to come closer. He did so slowly, his posture indicating that he knew he was likely in trouble. Sure enough, as soon as he was within arm’s reach, Nat jumped up and wrapped her arm around his neck, dragging him down and rubbing at his hair. She didn’t do it very hard, after all, she didn’t really want to hurt him, and he was able to pull away easily before he was in the lock for very long.

Nat didn’t respond to his jab with words, simply let him go and headed toward the replicator. “Make sure there’s a clear path to the tree,” she said as she headed over to put the plate of milk and cookies on the little table next to the tree. “Sandy will make sure everyone is asleep, but better to make sure North can actually get there without stepping on anyone.” She caught Chanyeol rolling his eyes as she turned back around, but she just smiled and shook her head at him. “Just you wait. You’ll see for yourself.”

She was about to try and find an empty part of the nest to curl up in, when Yixing grabbed her arm as she went past the couch he’d claimed. He didn’t say anything, just tugged her gently down and maneuvered her so that he could wrap his arms around her waist from behind. Nat couldn’t help smiling. She settled down comfortably and closed her eyes. The sounds of soft breathing and the gently crackling fire eventually lulled her to a sleep filled with dreams of what morning would bring.

~~~~~~~~

It was early on Christmas morning that Nate woke up. He’d rolled off the couch some time in the night, but the floor was so covered with pillows and blankets that he hadn’t even noticed. Sandy’s dreamsand must have really done its job.

He sat up slowly, rubbing at his eyes and squinting toward the tree. He could see the fuzzy shapes of many more presents than had been there the night before, and he grinned in satisfaction. He’d show Chanyeol the security video if he still didn’t believe.

Nate’s eyes swept toward the window, trying to gage what time it was by the amount of sunlight peeking through the curtains. Instead, he saw a dark shape against the window. He couldn’t see who it was, so he stood quietly and grabbed his glasses off the coffee table, so he could see. Somehow, he wasn’t surprised that it was Zitao.

 _“Good morning,”_ Nate said quietly as he approached the Chinese boy. Zitao turned to glance at him and whisper a good morning back. _“Merry Christmas.”_

 _“Merry Christmas,”_ Zitao replied. Nate joined him in gazing out at the city. It wasn’t quiet. This was New York, after all. But there was something somehow peaceful about the snow-covered city this early in the morning.

Nate peeked up at Zitao out of the corner of his eye. _“I never got a chance to thank you for rescuing me,”_ he said quietly.

Zitao looked over at Nate sharply. _“You shouldn’t thank us. It was our fault that you were there in that position. He wouldn’t have gone after you if- “_

Nate turned to him and reached up to place gentle fingers over his mouth. _“None of this was your fault, Tao Tao. I am constantly a target from so many different people. This time just happened to be from your past. It’s over now! The Doctor has sealed him away. He can never hurt me or any of you ever again!”_

Zitao reached up and took his fingers away from his mouth, not letting go and, instead, holding Nate’s hand over his heart. _“We could have lost you. I would never have forgiven myself if you had… If something had…”_ he trailed off, looking away.

Nate lifted one hand to Zitao’s face, taking his chin in a gentle grip and lifting his head so he had to look Nate straight in the eyes. _“I’m alright, Zitao. I promise. This was **not** your fault.”_ They shared a moment of intense eye contact before Nate released Zitao’s chin. Instead, he cupped the back of the singer’s head, sliding his fingers into the short hair there. He looked back up at the taller boy. The atmosphere had changed in an instant.

Zitao reached up to cup Nate’s face as well, his hand seeming so big next to Nate’s round face. He pulled the shorter boy closer, and then leaned down and kissed him. Fireworks exploded in Nate’s brain. The imitation kiss earlier was nothing compared to the reality of kissing Zitao. He was soft, and sweet, yet demanding. Nate melted into the kiss, letting the more experienced one guide the movements of their mouths.

Quiet applause broke into the moment, pulling them apart in shock. Baekhyun was clapping softly, a big grin on his face. “Jongdae owes me 20000 won,” he whispered, still grinning. “I was sure it would be you two, but he thought it would be Yifan!”

Nate ducked his head, blushing hard. “Hyung!” he whined softly, hiding his face in Zitao’s chest. His boyfriend just laughed, petting at his hair.

“I think you hurt his feelings,” he said quietly.

Baekhyun scrambled to his feet and rushed to wrap his arms around Nate, forgetting to be quiet. “I didn’t mean anything bad! I swear!”

Grumbles rippled through the room as Baekhyun’s voice pierced the morning quiet. Nate startled away from Zitao, slapping his hands over Baekhyun’s mouth and hoping that it was to dark for anyone to see how red his face was. “Hyung! Shhh!”

It was too late though. The room began to stir as the two groups sat up, blinking and wondering what exactly had woken them. Nate scrambled upstairs to his bedroom, planning to dress a bit more and get his reactions under control before he joined everyone for presents.

The gift opening scene was a mess of wrapping paper and ribbons. Everyone received a special jacket from North, designed to keep the wearer at a comfortable temperature. They could be worn in the blazing desert or the arctic cold, and you would be comfortable either way. Nate received albums and DVDs of various dramas that he’d been wanting, backstage passes to both Exo and BTS’s upcoming concerts, and a few plushies. He arranged them around himself and laughed when Arwen and Daniel abandoned their pursuit of the ribbon in Taehyung’s hand in favor of inspecting them.

Kyungsoo joined Nate in the kitchen to make breakfast the old-fashioned way while Seokjin and Junmyeon coordinated the living room clean up. “I had wondered if you gave up on cooking all together,” Kyungsoo commented as Nate slid the tray of cinnamon rolls into the oven. “With that replicator, why would you even want to”

“When I got it installed, I promised myself that I would only use it under very specific circumstances,” Nate explained. “I like cooking. I like that, when I bake something, the scent slowly spreads throughout the whole place. It’s one of the most wonderful feelings, to eat something good that you made yourself.”

Kyungsoo nodded in agreement, smiling. Nate would be good for them. He had known early on that it was so, but this just made it that much more obvious.

It didn’t take long for the scent of the warm cinnamon to bring the youngest members whining into the kitchen, begging for food. Nate held them off by pouring them big glasses of eggnog until the rolls were ready to be distributed. Everyone dug in, ignoring diets and simply enjoying the gooey treats and cold drinks.

They spent the rest of the morning and afternoon playing games on the various consoles, reading, chatting and inspecting their presents. Nate remained curled next to Zitao most of the time, only getting up when Taehyung and Baekhyun dragged him into a dance off on the Xbox 360 Kinect.

When it was time, they all donned their new jackets and assembled for transport to the party area. As they materialized, a cheer went up from those close enough to see them. Nate frowned in confusion, until Tony stepped up with a smug smile on his face. “Ladies and gentlemen let’s give it up for the newest couple, Nate and Zitao. May you manage to stay together long enough to start driving each other crazy.” He laughed and lifted his glass in salute.

Nate turned to glare daggers at Baekhyun. “You’re dead.” Baekhyun made the wise decision to make a run for it, Taehyung right on his heels.

Nate was about to follow, but Zitao wrapped his arms around his waist, hugging him close. _“Let them go, Babe. You don’t want to make a scene in front of all these people.”_ He was right, of course. Nate took a deep breath and straightened, taking Zitao’s hand in his and heading into the crowd to mingle.

The party was a huge success. Everyone laughed and exchanged gifts. Nate formally introduced Exo and BTS to Magnus and Alec who extended the introductions to Clary, Jace, Simon and Isabel. Demigods, Magicians, Hunters, Starfleet, Jedi, Superheroes; all gathered together to celebrate family and friends and mutual respect.

It ended at midnight with a display of fireworks so spectacular that Gandalf himself would have been jealous. As sparks rained down from the heavens, Nate leaned back against his boyfriend’s chest with a contented smile on his face. Nothing was ever going to be perfect in this world, but he could be sure that this was pretty damn close.


	13. Epilogue Universe

Epilogue

Universe

 

The air was bitter cold against Nat’s cheeks, but she was mostly managing to stay comfortable. She sent a silent thank you to North for the clothing he’d provided for the occasion when Jack informed him that the New Year’s Eve celebration in New York City would be plagued by below-freezing temperatures.

BTS had performed DNA and Mic Drop on stage earlier but were now huddled with Nat and Exo in their matching jackets. Cups of hot chocolate and apple cider were clutched in their hands as they waited the last few moments before the ball dropped, signaling the end of 2017 and the beginning of 2018.

Zitao pulled her out of the huddle, and she looked up at him, confused. _“I never gave you your Christmas present,”_ he said by way of explanation as he pulled a velvet box out of his pocket. Nat blinked in surprise, noting quickly that the box was too big for a ring.

She opened the lid and gasped at the beautiful necklace lying inside. Zitao’s hourglass was worked in shining silver and set with sparkling diamonds. It was surrounded by a circle of gold set with pale topaz, the yellow-orange stones adding a faceted sparkle to the shiny metal.

Nat looked up at Zitao in astonishment. His face was soft as he lifted the necklace from it’s box and hooked it gently around her neck. _“I feared my powers for so long. You gave me back the joy I had in them when I first received them. You are the keeper of my heart.”_

The count down began around them, but they were silent until it reached zero. As 2018 began in New York City, Zitao and Nat were sharing a kiss that would carry them for years through anything that the Universe could possibly throw at them.

 

結束

종료

The End


End file.
